Seals are mammals that live mostly in cold seas
They are related to the walrus
There are more than 30 species, or kinds,of seal
They can be divided into two groups: earless,
or true, seals and eared seals
Earless seals actually do have ears, but they
do not stick out
Eared seals have visible ears
Sea lions are eared seals with a thick, hairy neck that looks like a lion’s mane
Seals are found throughout the world
They are especially plentiful in seas near
the North and South poles
Some species like the open ocean
Others prefer to live along the coast
All seals spend some time on islands, beaches,
or sheets of ice
They come ashore to breed
A seal’s body is round in the middle and narrower at the ends
The skin is usually brown, gray, or black
The smallest seals are about 4 feet (1.2 meters)
long and weigh about 200 pounds (90 kilograms)
The largest seals can be 21 feet (6.5 meters)
long and weigh more than 8,000 pounds (3,600 kilograms)
They are called elephant seals
Instead of legs, seals have two pairs of flippers
Flippers help seals to swim
Eared seals can turn their rear flippers forward under the body
This allows them to scoot around while on land
Earless seals cannot turn their rear flippers forward
They move on land by wriggling on their bellies or pulling themselves forward with their front
flippers
Seals eat mostly fish
Some also eat squid and shellfish
The leopard seal of the Antarctic feeds on penguins and other seals