π¦ Animal world π¬ Sea animals
The seal
π In short
The seal is a mammal that lives in the sea, with a smooth body long like a torpedo and flippers for limbs. It's a superb swimmer that spends most of its time in water, but comes out onto the beach or ice to rest and have its babies.
π€© Did you know?
- Males of some seals can be 2.5 meters long and weigh 300 kilograms.
- A newborn fur seal pup weighs about 4.5 kilograms.
- Northern fur seals travel about 8000 kilometers a year.
- The elephant seal is one of the biggest seals, with a big droopy nose.
π Find out more
π Fat under the skin
Under a seal's skin is a thick layer of fat called blubber, which protects it from the cold in freezing water and stores energy.
π Slow on land
In the water a seal is quick and graceful, but on land it shuffles on its belly, wobbling slowly, because its flippers are made for swimming, not walking.
π‘ A great diver
A seal dives deep to catch fish and squid, closing its nose underwater and slowing its heartbeat so it can stay down a long time without breathing.
π― The white pup
The pups of some seals are born with soft white fur that keeps them warm on the ice, and drink their mother's very fatty milk, so they grow fast.
πΈ More pictures
𧩠Test yourself
1 What protects a seal from the cold?
2 Where does a seal give birth?
3 A newborn fur seal pup weighs about ?? kilograms.
4 Which picture shows βThe sealβ?
π¦ Discover more
π· Picture sources: Wikimedia Commons
- From a variety of images credited above. Β· CC0
- Wordless symbol at English Wikipedia Β· CC BY-SA 3.0
