Northern Fur Seal: a two-minute wildlife lesson

Sea Mammals · day 5 of 7

Five facts

1. It is the biggest of all the fur seals, and the last living member of its genus.
2. Check out those feet: thanks to extra cartilage on every toe, it has the longest hind flippers of any eared seal.
3. Males and females are built very differently: males grow roughly one third longer and weigh over 4.5 times as much.
4. About 1.1 million live across the north Pacific, and roughly half of them breed on the Pribilof Islands in the Bering Sea.
5. In May, older males arrive first to claim the best spots. They then stay put and go without food for the whole breeding season.

The quiz

1. What record does the northern fur seal hold among fur seals?

• It is the smallest
• It is the largest (correct)
• It lives only in the Southern Hemisphere
• It dives the deepest

It is the biggest member of the fur seal subfamily.

2. What is special about its hind flippers?

• They are the longest of any eared seal (correct)
• They have no toes
• They are covered in scales
• They glow in the dark

Cartilage extensions on its toes give it the longest hind flippers of any otariid.

3. How much heavier is an adult male than an adult female?

• They weigh the same
• Females are heavier
• Just a little heavier
• More than 4.5 times heavier (correct)

Males are more than 4.5 times heavier than females.

4. Where do roughly half of all northern fur seals breed?

• In Hawaii
• On the Galápagos
• On the Pribilof Islands (correct)
• In Iceland

About half of the 1.1 million breed on the Pribilof Islands.

5. What do older males do during the breeding season?

• Feed at sea every night
• Stay on land and fast (correct)
• Migrate to Japan
• Look after the pups

They stay on the rookery and fast for the whole season.

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