Caspian Seal

(Phoca caspica), a mammal of the family Phocidae of the order Pinnipedia. It measures 120–148 cm long and weighs 30–60 kg. The color of the body varies highly with each individual and changes with age: from white in the newborn to yellow and grayish brown with brown and dark spots in the adults. The Caspian seal lives only in the Caspian Sea. In the fall it migrates to the northern part of the sea where it gathers in large numbers on ice (breeding ground), gives birth, and molts. In the spring it returns to the south. It feeds primarily on trash fish. The Caspian seal is important in the seal-hunting industry (its fur, hide, and fat are used). Because of unrestrained trapping (about 100, 000 animals per year), its numbers have declined. There are an estimated 600, 000 seals remaining (1970).