True Seals (Phocidae)

 

 

The earless or true seals occur in the oceans of both hemispheres and are mostly confined to polar, subpolar, and temperate climates; two species are endemic to large inland waterbodies (the Caspian Sea and Lake Baikal), and the other two inhabit sub-tropical or tropical waters. The family consists of 10 genera and 18 species. Phocids are more streamlined than the otariids, and swim by sideways movements of their bodies, using their fore flippers primarily for steering. They spend most of their time at sea, but return to land or pack ice to breed and give birth. Some species assemble in large herds on beaches or ice floes.

 

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