Seal of the seal. A small seal. Belek is a young seal

Seals are common in all the northern seas. These are predatory mammals from the group of pinnipeds. Two subspecies (European and island) are listed in the Red Book. The coastal waters of the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans, the North and Baltic Seas are also inhabited by seals.

Description of animals

The weight and length of the animal can vary greatly - from ninety-five kilograms to three tons, from one and a half to six meters. The smallest species is the ringed seal, the largest is the sea elephant. Usually the color of the animal is brown, gray or reddish. Under natural conditions, females live to thirty-five years, and males live up to twenty. The animal's body is spindle-shaped, the head is small, tapering from the front. A short and slow-moving neck, ears are absent. Well pronounced, but short tail. The front fins are rather short (less than twenty-five percent of the total body length). They are much shorter than the rear.

Reproduction and feeding

In the mating season seals are kept in pairs. The birth of a calf usually occurs on ice. One puppy is born. To the light he appears sighted, completely physically formed. Most often, females try to hide their cub in the snow holes. Feeding with milk stops when the cub is not yet able to get food, so from two to twelve weeks the animals starve, surviving only due to accumulated fat.

Seal of a seal: what's it called?

This, perhaps, the most charming representatives of the animal world - a large head and large, wide-open eyes. In addition, these kids have snow-white fur covering the entire body. Since ancient times, Pomors named the adult male seal as a bald, the female as a hive, and their cubs were called differently, depending on their age - with squirrels, herrings, serks, hohlushkas. All these names are correct and relevant in our day. In scientific literature, a small seal is most often called a puppy. And such a baby is called a seal.

Seal of the seal: birth

In the summer months, seals live in the Far North. Later in the autumn they begin to move to the south. For breeding, they choose large and solid ice floes, on which "dugouts" are created, which can stretch for tens of kilometers. The number of animals in such "colonies" amounts to tens of thousands of individuals. Pregnancy of seals continues for eleven and a half months. I must say that the ice is a reliable antiseptic: very low temperatures do not allow the development of microbes. The birth of children occurs from January to April. The bulk of the cubs appears from the twentieth of February to the fifth of March.

Green Seal

A newborn baby seal is named its name (or rather, one of them) due to the color of its fur coat. The body of the puppy is covered with a thick, long wool of white color with a greenish tinge. Hence the name "green". At birth, it weighs 8-10 kilograms, and in length reaches 92 centimeters.

Beet Seal

Greenish shade persists for long. By the way, it is formed under the influence of amniotic fluid in the womb. After five days, it disappears completely, and the seal's baby, the photo of which you see in this article, turns into a most charming creature of absolutely white color. At this time, he is very dependent on his mother. A female seal feeds its young every four to five hours. Her milk is very fatty (fat is up to fifty percent). Thanks to this, the baby gets up to three kilograms of weight a day. During this period the young seal is very vulnerable. What is he called at this time? Of course, belek.

Features of the seal

The huge eyes of the belka are constantly watering, so it gives the impression that the animal is crying. But this is a natural process of moisturizing the eyes. Belek, a young seal, is constantly trembling. This is due to the regulation of heat in his body. He has not yet formed a fat layer, as in an adult animal. The wool of the belka consists of transparent hollow hairs that pass sunlight to the black skin well, thereby warming it.

Existing Misconceptions

For a long time, the researchers of these animals believed that the female, who needed to be away from time to time in search of food for herself, finds a squirrel in her voice. This is not true. The seal baby has an individual smell, thanks to which the mother finds it.

It was believed that the seal's baby (whose name is belek), which a man once stroked, will forever remain an "orphan". The female will no longer approach him. This is not true. If you happen to visit the North Pole, you can iron these charming animals as much as you like, but do it with gloves, as they react very negatively to the too "hot" for them human hand.

And one more tip. By stroking the squirrel and playing with it, do not block it from the mother - having lost the cub from the sight, it can rush into the attack.

Seal-Khokhlusha

In the third week of life, the beetle begins to shed. Under its magnificent white fur, a silvery skin becomes noticeable. A week of such a young seal is called a Khokhlusha.

Serka is a young seal

When the seal turns one month, the fur of the animal changes again. It turns into a simple for these mammals hard and short hair. The fur is gray, the back is darker. There are dark, almost black spots. During this period the seal's baby is called Serka.

The enemy of seals

The most terrible and merciless enemy of seals is the polar bear. At the end of a harsh and hungry winter, the seal's cub for him is an excellent prey. The female usually does not protect the squirrel - what can it counter with the hungry and furious predator in its native element? If the ceiling is more than a meter above the snow hole, then the bear finds it difficult to find shelter, but if the hole is found, the belek is doomed to destruction.

Seal hunting

Up to two thousand and nine, our country was the only one in the world where it was allowed to hunt for belkov. Moreover, Russia is also the main importer of seal fur products. Usually it is fur of more adult individuals - Serki.

Animal protection

The International Foundation IFAW became the first organization to defend the belka. It was to protect these charming animals with valuable fur that this organization was created. The Foundation extends its work to Canada and Russia. Many famous people of the planet joined his work. Brigitte Bardot in 1977 organized a demonstration at the Norwegian embassy. Then the President of France banned the importation of furs from the belka into the country. Therefore, it is fairly believed that it was France - the first country that introduced special prohibitive measures aimed at protecting these animals. Later, Paul McCartney joined the defenders. He flew to Canada, to the site of the slaughter of the belka, and held several charitable events.

In Russia, this work began in 2008 thanks to the efforts of the public. Many famous people of our country appealed to the president of the country. Elena Kamburova, Andrey Makarevich, Laima Vaikule, Konstantin Raikin, Mikhail Shirvindt and other actors, as well as scientists, artists, journalists supported the protest against the destruction of the belka.

In February 2009, a complete (temporary) ban on capturing young seals of all age groups was introduced in our country. Vladimir Putin (Prime Minister at the time) applauded animal advocates around the world. It was he who achieved this prohibition.