File:Harp_Seal_(Pagophilus_groenlandicus),_Greenland_Sea_IMG_5075.jpg · Wikimedia Commons · See Wikimedia Commons
Harp Seal
Sign in to saveAlso known as Pagophilus groenlandicus, Pagophilus groenlandica
species of mammal
OverviewAI-generated
The harp seal, scientifically named *Pagophilus groenlandicus*, is a species of marine mammal. It belongs to the family Phocidae within the order Carnivora, class Mammalia, and phylum Chordata. The species was described by Erxleben in 1777 and is also referred to by common names such as Greenland Seal, Foca pía, and Sattelrobbe. Its taxonomic status is accepted, and it has a gestation period of 11.5.
The harp seal’s range includes Greenland. According to the IUCN Red List, its conservation status was assessed as Near Threatened in 2025. Other sources list its status as Least Concern or Near Threatened. The species is documented in the Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary.
Synthesized by Vinony from 23 facts across 4 sources: Wikidata, IUCN Red List, WoRMS, Vinony graph. Generated from structured data (not the Wikipedia text) and checked against those facts — may still contain errors.
Species
Near Threatenedharp seal
Species
- PhylumChordata
- ClassMammalia
- OrderCarnivora
- FamilyPhocidae
via IUCN
Wikidata facts
- Instance of
- taxon
- Image
- Harp Seal (Pagophilus groenlandicus), Greenland Sea IMG 5006.jpg
Show 9 more facts
- taxon rank
- species
- IUCN conservation status
- Near Threatened
- taxon name
- Pagophilus groenlandicus
- Commons category
- Pagophilus groenlandicus
- Commons gallery
- Pagophilus groenlandicus
- gestation period
- 11.5
- short name
- P. groenlandicus
- taxon common name
- foca dalla sella
- taxon range
- Greenland
via Wikidata · CC0
~21 min read
Encyclopedic overview
The harp seal (Pagophilus groenlandicus), also known as the saddleback seal or Greenland seal, is a species of earless seal, or true seal, native to the northernmost Atlantic Ocean and Arctic Ocean. Originally in the genus Phoca with a number of other species, it was reclassified into the monotypic genus Pagophilus in 1844. In Greek, its scientific name translates to "Greenlandic ice-lover", and its taxonomic synonym, Phoca groenlandica translates to "Greenlandic seal".
Description
Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “Harp Seal” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.