Encyclopedia of Life · EOL (see source)
In the Vinony graph
Within Vinony's link graph, Spotted Seal is referenced by 537 other articles, and connects out to Hyaenidae, Sea of Okhotsk and Yellow Sea.
Vinony files it under Biota of the Temperate Northern Pacific, Commons link is on Wikidata and ESA threatened species.
Its subject is documented across 41 Wikipedia language editions.
Species
Least Concernspotted seal
Species
- PhylumChordata
- ClassMammalia
- OrderCarnivora
- FamilyPhocidae
Observations: In the wild, these animals are believed to live up to 35 years (Bernhard Grzimek 1990). Their longevity in captivity has not been studied in detail, but one specimen lived 33.6 years (Richard Weigl 2005). More detailed studies are necessary to determine the maximum longevity of this species. Previously classified as *Phoca vitulina largha*.
via IUCN
Wikidata facts
- Image
- Spotted seal mother and pup in the Bering Sea.jpg
Show 7 more facts
- taxon name
- Phoca largha
- Commons category
- Phoca largha
- Commons gallery
- Phoca largha
- gestation period
- 10.5
- sequenced genome URL
- www.dnazoo.org/assemblies/Phoca_largha
- short name
- P. largha
- taxon common name
- Spotted seal
Sources (1)
via Wikidata · CC0
~9 min read
Encyclopedic overview
The spotted seal (Phoca largha), also known as the larga seal or largha seal, is a species of earless seal (or true seal, Phocidae). It inhabits ice floes and waters of the north Pacific Ocean and adjacent seas. It is primarily found along the continental shelf of the Beaufort, Chukchi, Bering and Okhotsk Seas and south to the northern Yellow Sea and it migrates south as far as northern Huanghai and the western Sea of Japan. It is also found in Alaska from the southeastern Bristol Bay to Demarcation Point during the ice-free seasons of summer and autumn when spotted seals mate and have pups. Smaller numbers are found in the Beaufort Sea. It is sometimes mistaken for the harbor seal to which it is closely related and spotted seals and harbor seals often mingle together in areas where their habitats overlap.
The reduction in arctic ice floes due to global warming led to concerns that the spotted seal was threatened with extinction. Studies were conducted on its population numbers, with the conclusion, as of 15 October 2009, that the spotted seal population in Alaskan waters is not currently to be listed as endangered by NOAA. However, as of 2026, the NOAA considers the distinct population group of southern spotted seals to be threatened.
Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “Spotted Seal” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.