Ringed seal
| ringed seal | ||||||||||||
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 ringed seal | ||||||||||||
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| scientific name | ||||||||||||
| Phoca hispida | ||||||||||||
| Schreber 1775 |
the ringed seal (Phoca hispida) is the most frequent seal the arctic. Beside the Arctic ocean inhabits these close relatives of the Seehunds also the northern ranges of the Baltic Sea.
Table of contents |
characteristics
the ringed seal is designated after the dark marks on grey reason. This design is variable: Some ringed seals have clearly visible, round marks, with others blur them to an irregular design.
The ringed seals of the arctic are about 120 cm long and 50 kg heavily, males are somewhat larger on average than females. The ringed seals of the Baltic Sea with 140 cm and 100 kg are clearly larger.
very
habitats inhabit habitat circulation area four subspecies,however all this in polar or subpolaren regions lie. The polar sea ringed seal (P. h. hispida) is the most frequent seal of the Arctic ocean, where it is on the driving and luggage ice at home. The Baltic Sea ringed seal (P. h. botnica) lives within the cold rangesthe Baltic Sea, i.e. at the coasts of Sweden, Finland and Estonia; only very rarely mad itself individual ringed seals to to German Baltic Sea coasts. Besides there are two remarkable fresh water subspecies: P. h. ladogensis in the Russian Ladogasee, and P. h. saimensis in the Finnish Saimaa - lake.
way of life
the ringed seal is a einzelgängerisches animal, which does not form colonies. To an all-season life in the polar sea it is very well adapted, since it can still keep ice holes open themselves with the claws of its front fins if the surrounding ice sheet already 2 m thicklyis. It always extends however existing holes and creates themselves no own. Sometimes at the edge of the ice hole she digs herself a cave into the snow, in which she throws her young.
The food consists almost exclusively of fish up to a maximum length of 20 cm.Normally them remain two to five minutes under water, can dip however with appropriate necessity 45 minutes, without having to get air.
The boys come into March or April to a carrying time of eleven months to the world, with the fresh water subspecies in May. They become threeuntil six weeks sucked and learn to dip very early. This fast development is in view of the threat by polar bears and polar foxes a necessity.
With five to seven years ringed seals become sex ripe. Their life expectancy can amount to 43 years, is however mostly just half so long.
subspecies
polar sea ringed seal (P. h. hispida)
about 7 million ringed seals live in the Arctic ocean, which makes this kind the most frequent seal of the arctic. Their skin and their Tran for seal hunters of potenziellem interest are, but there ringed seals only individualand not in groups, are not not particularly attractive they arise for hunters. For the polar bear the ringed seal is probable in all areas the most important booty animal. Since polar bears and ringed seals in the same habitat occur, proven protected areas also the seal existence come in recent time for the polar bearof benefit.
Baltic Sea ringed seal (P. h. botnica)
in 19. Century lived some hundredthousand ringed seals in the Finnish one and in the Bottni sea bosom. The existence were brought by mass slaughters to the edge of becoming extinct. Also after one had placed the ringed seals under protection, wentthe population further back; as a cause poison introduction were constituted into the Baltic Sea, by which the seals became unfruchtbar. One estimates the existence current at 5500 animals. The problem of the poison introduction exists far, particularly coasts Russian in the proximity; at Finnish and Swedish coasts showthe existence first indications of a recovery.
Ladoga ringed seal (P. h. ladogensis)
the ringed seals of the Ladogasees are above all endangered by poison introduction and Fischer nets, in which they get caught again and again. Since the 1980ern stand they under unrestricted protection, but there thoseresidents Binnenfi the seals as competitors with fishing regard, give it a dark number of illegal killings. Nevertheless in the meantime again 5000 ringed seals in the Ladogasee live.
Saimaa ringed seal (P. h. saimensis)
the ringed seals of the Saima lake (called in Finland Norppa) were placed 1955 under protectionand thus extermination protects; by mercury introduction and hunt this subspecies had been reduced to an individual number of 180. After the mechanism of two of national park in the 1980ern and intensified protection efforts the population grows at present by approximately 2% per year. It lies nowwith 250 animals and is still considered as extremely vulnerable.
threat and protection
during the polar sea ringed seal in their existence are up-to-date not endangered, stand it around the other subspecies more badly. The IUCN leads the Baltic Sea and Ladoga ringed seal as endangered, the Saimaa ringed sealas threatens. In that Bernese convention is led the Baltic Sea ringed seal under appendix III (protected), the Ladoga and Saimaa ringed seal in appendix II (strictly protected).
literature
- Ronald M. Nowak: Walker's Mammals OF the World. 6th edition. John Hopkins University press, Baltimore 1999, ISBN 0-80-185789-9
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