Pagophilus groenlandicus   (Erxleben, 1777)

Harp seal

Native range | All suitable habitat | Point map | Year 2050
This map was computer-generated and has not yet been reviewed.
Pagophilus groenlandicus  AquaMaps  Data sources: GBIF OBIS
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Pagophilus groenlandicus

Classification / Names Common names | Synonyms | CoL | ITIS | WoRMS

Mammalia | Carnivora | Phocidae

Environment: milieu / climate zone / depth range / distribution range Ecology

Bathydemersal; depth range 0 - 6000 m (Ref. 356).  Boreal; 90°N - 0°S, 97°W - 180°E

Distribution Countries | FAO areas | Ecosystems | Occurrences | Introductions

Atlantic Ocean and the Arctic: North Atlantic Ocean, Arctic Ocean, Baffin Island, Magdalen Island, Russia, Canada (Ref. 1394). Pagophilus groenlandicus groenlandicus: Newfoundland, Jan Mayen (Norway), Baffin Bay, Greenland Sea, Nova Scotia, Greenland, Iceland; and vagrants in Virginia, Scotland, Germany, France; Pagophilus groenlandicus oceanicus: Barents Sea, Russia, White Sea (Ref. 1522).

Length at first maturity / Size / Weight / Age

Maturity: Lm ?  range ? - ? cm Max length : 190 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 1394); 180 cm TL (female); max. published weight: 135.0 kg (Ref. 1394); max. published weight: 135.0 kg

Biology     Glossary (e.g. epibenthic)

Live chiefly in pack ice, but can be found away from it in summer. Feeds on a variety of crustaceans and open-water fishes during migration, and switch to several varieties of bottom dwelling fishes in summer on the northern grounds (Ref. 1394). Live chiefly in pack ice, but can be found away from it in summer (Ref. 1394). Adults are highly gregarious; young seals tend to be solitary. Typically forms aggregations when feeding (Ref. 117964). Feeds on a variety of crustaceans and open-water fishes during migration, and switch to several varieties of bottom dwelling fishes in summer on the northern grounds (Ref. 1394).

Life cycle and mating behavior Maturity | Reproduction | Spawning | Eggs | Fecundity | Larvae

Main reference References | Coordinator | Collaborators

Jefferson, T.A., S. Leatherwood and M.A. Webber. 1993. (Ref. 1394)

IUCN Red List Status (Ref. 130435)

  Least Concern (LC) ; Date assessed: 06 June 2015

CITES status (Ref. 108899)

Not Evaluated

CMS (Ref. 116361)

Not Evaluated

Threat to humans

Human uses

Fisheries: commercial
FAO - Fisheries: landings, species profile | FIRMS (Stock assessments) | FishSource | Sea Around Us

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More information

Common names
Synonyms
Predators
Reproduction
Maturity
Spawning
Fecundity
Eggs
Egg development
Age/Size
Growth
Length-weight
Length-length
Morphology
Larvae
Abundance
References
Mass conversion

Internet sources

BHL | BOLD Systems | CISTI | DiscoverLife | FAO(Fisheries: species profile; publication : search) | Fishipedia | GenBank (genome, nucleotide) | GloBI | Gomexsi | Google Books | Google Scholar | Google | PubMed | Tree of Life | Wikipedia (Go, Search) | Zoological Record

Estimates based on models

Preferred temperature (Ref. 115969): -0.9 - 4.1, mean 0.6 (based on 2101 cells).
Vulnerability (Ref. 71543): Moderate to high vulnerability (54 of 100).
Price category (Ref. 80766): Unknown.