Nerpa is a mammal of Baikal. Baikal seal

In principle, it is impossible to somehow compare these animals, since seals are a collective concept that includes not only seals, but also monk seals, elephant seals, Ross seals, crabeater seals, leopard seal, Weddell seals, sea ​​hares(also called bearded seals), hooded seals, long-faced seals, harp seals and zebra seals. Well, seals are one of the genera of this diverse family, or the so-called subfamily.

But if we compare seals with all other animals of the family, the first ones are considered smaller. Thus, the average size of a ringed seal is only about 1.25-1.3 m, and its weight is about 90 kg. The largest animals of this family are considered to be elephant seals - the weight of males of these animals can reach 3.5-3.7 tons, and the length from the tip of the nose to the end of the tail is 6.5-6.7 m.

The habitats of all seal genera are different, eating habits, as well as the timing of growth, raising cubs, timing of weaning from the mother and many other aspects.

More about seals

In addition to the already mentioned ringed seal, which is also called the akiba, or in Latin Pusa hispida, this genus of animals includes the Baikal seal, or Pusa sibirica, and the Caspian seal, Pusa caspica. Unfortunately, all of them were and are objects of fishing, as a result of which some subspecies are already included in the Red Book of Russia and the world.

Baikal seal, as its name suggests, lives only in fresh waters Lake Baikal and is its endemic. The beds of these animals are usually located on the shores of the Ushkany islands of the lake, and very often these curious seals swim up to ships and to the shores of the lake. The animals feed on lake golomyanka and Baikal goby, and in a year one individual can eat up to 1 ton of food.

In turn, the more heat-loving Caspian seal is endemic to the Caspian Sea. Moreover, these animals can often be seen at the mouth of the Volga River, as well as near the city of Volgograd. This seal lives up to 50 years, and can catch food at a depth of up to 80 m. Mainly, these are sprat and various crustaceans.

The ringed seal is found only in Arctic waters - in the Arctic Ocean. Unlike all other seals, they live exclusively solitarily and do not form mass haulouts. These animals are traditionally hunted and slaughtered by the Eskimos. By the way, it is the ringed seal that is depicted on the coat of arms of the city of Snezhnogorsk.

The Baikal freshwater seal (nerpa) is the only mammal of Lake Baikal. According to morphological and biological characteristics, the Baikal seal is close to the ringed seal that lives in the seas Far North And Far East. There are some signs of similarity between the seal and the Caspian seal.

The seal is called a symbol of Baikal, the same as the famous Baikal omul, its images are used on emblems. This is an interesting object of ecological tourism.

Description

Who are seals? These amazing mammals They have a spindle-shaped body that smoothly turns into the head. They reach a height of 165 cm, and their weight ranges from 50 to 130 kg. The body of the animal contains a huge amount of subcutaneous fat, which perfectly retains heat in cold water and helping the animal survive long periods of food shortage, as well as stay on the water surface during sleep. They sleep so soundly that there have even been cases when scuba divers could turn them over without interfering with their sleep.

The strong skin of the animal is covered with hard, dense and short hair. They have membranes between their toes, and their front flippers are equipped with powerful claws. It is thanks to the forelimbs that seals make an outlet in the ice in order to go out after a hunt and rest on the rocks or on the ice, and also in order to breathe Fresh air. Nerpa has phenomenal ability stay under water continuously for up to 40 minutes. This is due to the presence of a small lung volume and the content of dissolved oxygen in the blood. Thanks to its hind legs, the animal swims quite quickly under water, but on its surface it is completely clumsy and clumsy.

Features and habitat of the Baikal seal

This is a fairly large animal, almost human height 1.65 cm, and weighing from 50 to 130 kg. The animal is covered everywhere with thick and hard hairline. It is not there only in the eyes and nostrils. It is even found on the animal's flippers. Seal fur is mostly gray or gray-brown in color with a beautiful silver tint. Most often, the lower part of her body is lighter than the upper part.

The animal seal swims without problems thanks to the membranes on its fingers. Strong claws are clearly visible on the front paws. On hind legs they are a little smaller. The seal has practically no neck.

Females are always slightly larger than males. The eyes of the seal have a third eyelid. After being in the air for a long time, her eyes begin to water involuntarily. There is simply a huge amount of fat deposits in the animal’s body.

The seal's fat layer is about 10-15 cm. The least amount of fat is in the area of ​​the head and front paws. Fat helps the animal not to freeze in cold water.

Also, with the help of this fat, it is easy for the seal to survive difficult periods of lack of food. Subcutaneous fat Baikal seal helps her long time lie on the surface of the water.

She can even sleep in this position. Their sleep is enviably very sound. There have been cases when scuba divers turned over these sleeping animals, and they did not even wake up.

The Baikal seal nerpa lives exclusively on Lake Baikal. There are, however, exceptions and seals end up in the Angara. IN winter time During the year, they spend almost all their time in the underwater kingdom of the lake and only in rare cases can they appear on its surface.

In order to have enough oxygen under water, seals use their sharp claws to make small holes in the ice. The usual dimensions of such holes are from 40 to 50 cm. The deeper the funnel, the wider it is.

End winter period for this pinniped animal it is characterized by going out onto the ice. At first summer month There is a huge concentration of these animals in the area of ​​the coast of the Ushkany Islands.

This is where the real seal rookery is located. As soon as the sun sets in the sky, these animals begin to move together towards the islands. After the ice floes disappear from the lake, seals try to stay closer to the coastal zone.

Behavior

Adults tend to be solitary and love to travel. In winter, they make holes in the ice for breathing (vents) and maintain them in a non-freezing condition. Some animals, in addition to one main ice hole, build up to 10 additional ice holes and vigilantly ensure that they do not freeze, regularly destroying the thin ice shell by pressing their muzzle from below.

If its thickness reaches 2 cm, then blows with the front flippers are used, and at 3-6 cm, sharp, strong claws are used. This activity takes a lot of time and effort, since the thickness of the ice on Lake Baikal ranges from 60 to 150 cm, and in the bays it reaches 2 m.

In some places the lake is from severe frosts cracks form in the ice 10-30 km long and 2-3 m wide, which attract Baikal seals and many fish, which serve as their main source of food.

From March to May aquatic mammals rush from south to north along with the beginning of ice drift. During this period, all individuals, starting from one year old, get out onto a hard surface and shed. Molting most often occurs directly on the ice, less often on coastal stones, and is widespread.

In summer and autumn, individual individuals molt individually or in small groups.

Nutrition

Young animals do not have the ability to dive deeply, so up to 3 years of age they feed near the shore. The basis of their diet consists of bottom gobies (Cottoidei) and yellowwings (Cottocomephoridae). The menu of adult specimens is dominated by pelagic crustaceans and small golomyanka (Comephorus dybowski).

These fish, about 14 cm long, live at depths from 130 to 1700 m and differ big amount fat, reaching 30% of the total weight. In the menu of the Baikal seal they occupy more than 60% of all food eaten. She eats 2.5-3 kg of food per day.

The predator obtains most of its food at a depth of 10-50 m, sometimes diving to a maximum of 300 m. Staying under water lasts 2-4 minutes, in extreme cases up to 40 minutes.

An adult seal eats up to 1 ton of fish per year. Omul ends up in the seal's food by accident and in a very bad way. large quantities, no more than 1 − 2% of daily ration. Omul, like grayling and whitefish, is an energetic and fast fish; the seal simply cannot catch up with it.

Reproduction of the Baikal seal

Baikal seals become sexually mature at the age of 3-4 years, their first offspring appear at 4-7 years. Puberty in males occurs 1-2 years later than in females. The duration of pregnancy is 11 months.

During her life, the female gives birth to about two dozen babies, giving birth on average until she is 40 years old. Childbirth occurs every year.

Baikal seal cubs are born in a prepared snow den in February-March. This snow chamber is connected to the water by a special hole. A female has 1-2 babies in a litter, their weight is up to 4 kg. Baby seals are white in color, for this reason they are often called squirrels. For the first 4-6 weeks of life, the seal remains in the den and feeds only on its mother’s milk. At this time, he does not go outside and does not dive under water. Before the den is destroyed, the baby is completely moulted. The mother always takes care of the offspring, which she leaves only to go for food. When the female is inside the den, the temperature in it reaches +5 °C, and frosts outside at this time range from minus 15 to minus 20 °C. Males do not take any part in raising offspring.

Lactation in seals lasts 2-2.5 months. If the ice cover does not disappear, it may continue longer. After switching to independent feeding, the babies molt, their fur becomes silver-gray at 2-3 months, and later turns brown-brown.

Wintering

The seal winters on the ice in lairs under the snow on hummocky areas of Lake Baikal, often in pressure areas - piles of ice floes forming canopies. As ice forms on the surface of the lake, the animal creates a main air duct with a diameter of 1-2 m, maintaining it in this state, removing ice.

When the lake is covered with ice, the seal can breathe only through spare vents, which it makes by raking the ice from below with the claws of its forelimbs. Around her lair there are up to a dozen or more auxiliary vents, spaced from the main one by tens and even hundreds of meters. The vents are usually round in shape, 10-15 cm in size, sufficient to stick your nose above the water. The vents widen significantly downwards, having the shape of an overturned funnel.

Interestingly, the ability to make perfume is an innate instinct. In the experimental aquarium, for the seal to rest on the water surface, a small floating platform made of 5-centimeter foam plastic was installed, and the rest of the aquarium was covered with open water. Young seals, one month and two months old, made holes in the foam, raking it with their claws from below, stuck out their noses and breathed into the vents, although there was someone nearby open water. Having become “saturated” with air, they went under the water again. It should be noted that the seals were caught at a week or two weeks of age, when they were still feeding on their mother’s milk. I had to feed them with condensed milk through a nipple from a bottle, like children. They had not yet swum in water and were afraid of water. And when they grew up, they showed what they were capable of.

According to observations, the seal sleeps in the water, as it is immobilized for quite a long time. Sleep probably continues as long as there is enough oxygen in the blood. While the seal was sleeping, scuba divers swam close to it, touched it and even turned it over, but the animal continued to sleep

It is unknown how the seal ended up in Baikal. Some researchers believe that it penetrated into it during the Ice Age from Arctic Ocean through the Yenisei-Angara river system simultaneously with the Baikal omul. Others believe that the entire family of true seals (Caspian, Baikal and ringed seals) initially appeared in large freshwater bodies of Eurasia and only then settled into the Caspian Sea, the Arctic Ocean and Lake Baikal. However, this mystery has not yet been solved.

The Baikal seal can accelerate underwater to a speed of 25 kilometers per hour. She is an unrivaled swimmer and can easily outrun danger at such speed.

The seal dives to a depth of 200 meters and remains under water for 20-25 minutes.

A seal can stop a pregnancy: no other animal on Earth can do this. In some cases, the embryo stops developing, but does not die or be destroyed, but simply falls into suspended animation, which lasts until the next mating season. And then the seal gives birth to two cubs at once.

Pregnancy of seals lasts 11 months. Females whelp in March-April. Fur seals white That's why they are called squirrels. This coloring allows them to remain almost invisible in the snow in the first weeks of life. With the transition to independent feeding on fish, the cubs molt, the fur gradually acquires a silver-gray color in two-three-month-olds, and in older and adult individuals it becomes brownish-brown.

The fat content of Baikal seal milk is 60%. The nutritional properties of milk help seals gain weight quickly.

Seals build their winter homes from under the ice. They swim to a suitable place, make holes - vents, scraping the ice with the claws of their forelimbs. As a result, their house is covered from the surface with a protective snow cap.

The Baikal seal is a very cautious, but inquisitive and intelligent animal. If she sees that there is not enough space in the rookery, then she begins to deliberately splash her flippers on the water, imitating the splash of oars, in order to scare away her relatives and settle down in the vacant place.

Seals live 55-56 years. Adult animals reach 1.6-1.7 meters in length and 150 kilograms in weight. Sexual maturity occurs in the fourth to sixth year of life. Females are able to bear fruit up to 40-45 years.

Population and species status

Limnological Siberian Institute The Academy of Sciences of the Russian Federation uses different methods for counting the population, for example, by inspecting the territories of Lake Baikal from air transport or aerial photography. By the early 2000s, about 60 thousand pinnipeds lived on Baikal. According to estimates, the number of seals is now 115 thousand. The increase in the number of animals became possible after restrictions on hunting and as a result of the fight against poachers. But there is still illegal hunting for seals that have undergone their first moult.

The Baikal seal is not listed in the main section of the Red Book, but according to its status, it requires attention to their numbers and living in nature. Since 2007, hunting them has been prohibited. The exception is local peoples who belong to the small representatives of the Far North. In 2018, the ban on seal fishing was extended.

Interesting fact: To observe the life of the Baikal seal, you can visit nerpintariums in Irkutsk, Listvyanka and the village. MRS near the Small Sea. The stable state of the seal population is associated with many features of the nature of its life, which are responsible for survival in cold climates and deep-sea environments.

These factors include:

• arrangement of lairs;
• construction of vents;
• long lactation;
• rapid growth of squirrels;
• good diving and breath-holding abilities.

This pinniped is quite flexible and can adapt to changes in freeze-up conditions, regulate its food ration, and withstand disease outbreaks relatively easily.

The Baikal seal is a significant link in the biotic chain of the animal world of Lake Baikal. It regulates the dynamics of reproduction different types fish The diet of the pinniped includes a large number of pelagic fish, which are not commercially available, but compete for food supply among valuable species: omul, whitefish, grayling, lenka. Maintaining the cleanliness of the waters of Lake Baikal depends on a mustachioed crustacean, the epishura, which allows liquid to pass through itself. It is eaten by golomyankas and gobies - the main food of the Baikal seal. Thus, the number of epishura, and therefore the purity of the lake’s waters, is maintained in natural balance.

The Baikal seal is one of three species of freshwater seals that live on our planet. This animal is endemic and the only mammal living in the waters of Lake Baikal, located in the south Eastern Siberia. It is considered one of the most interesting sites of the rapidly growing popularity of so-called eco-tourism. Read more about the lifestyle and habitat of the Baikal seal further in this article.

Short description

Adult animals can reach a length of 165 cm, and their weight varies between 50-120 kg. The growth of seals stops only in the nineteenth year of life, however, at the same time, body weight can periodically increase or decrease. The Baikal seal lives on average 55-60 years.

Underwater, the animal usually swims at a speed of no more than 8 km/h, but during hunting or in case of threat it can increase significantly. Getting ashore, the seal moves slowly with the help of flippers and a tail, however, sensing danger, it jumps quite recklessly, pushing off the ground with them.

Baikal seals do not need to dive too deep. The fact is that they feed on such non-commercial fish as golomyanka, omul and goby, which are found in the illuminated areas of the lake. But, despite this, they are capable of diving to a depth of 200-300 m and withstanding a pressure of 21 atmospheres. A seal can stay under water for more than one hour. This time is quite enough to find food or escape persecution.

First mention of the animal

It dates back to the beginning of the 17th century. At this time, the second Kamchatka, or, as it was also called, the Great Northern Expedition, organized by Vitus Bering himself, took place here. It also included a group of researchers led by I. G. Gmelin. It was she who was engaged in a more in-depth study of the nature of Lake Baikal and its surroundings. It was then that a seal was first spotted, which was later named the seal.

Then local residents claimed that the same animal was found not only in the waters of Baikal, but also in the Bauntov lakes. It is assumed that the seal could have gotten there in two ways - through the Lena or Vitim rivers. Some researchers are inclined to believe that the seal could have penetrated there directly through Baikal, since it previously communicated with these lakes. However, none of the above assumptions has yet been able to find reliable confirmation.

Favorite Habitats

The Baikal seal can be found throughout the reservoir, but the largest concentration of these animals is most often observed in the middle and northern parts of the lake. However, most favorite place their habitat is the Ushkany Islands, which are part of National Park called "Zabaikalsky".

If there is no ice on the lake, seals prefer to rest, lying on rocks protruding from the water and basking in the sun, alternately placing warm rays first one side, then the other. Largest quantity These animals can be observed in June, when they come to the surface for a long time and are located along the rocky shores of the Ushkany Islands.

Where does the Baikal seal winter?

During the cold season, animals live on the ice in special lairs located under the snow. They are often found in hummocky areas of the lake. When Baikal begins to freeze, the animals make their main blowhole on the ice, the average diameter of which is about 150 cm. Interestingly, seals can maintain it in this state for a long time, from time to time removing the ice that forms on it.

When severe frosts occur, when the lake freezes, these animals, being under thick snow, breathe only through secondary vents. To do this, they rake the ice using their forelimbs, which end in strong claws. Thus, a seal’s lair can have up to a dozen similar vents located along its perimeter. The diameter of the secondary vents is no more than 15 cm. Such a hole is enough for the animal to stick its nose there.

Reproduction

Sexual maturity in these animals occurs already in the fourth year of life in females and in the sixth in males. The gestation period for Baikal seal cubs lasts 11 months. Once the female turns 40, she is no longer able to give birth. In her entire life, she can give birth to 20, and with favorable conditions and more babies.

Before giving birth, the female prepares a reliable snow shelter. Usually one or two cubs are born. The weight of newborns is no more than 4 kg. Seals have soft white fur, which is why they are often called squirrels.

Caring for offspring

The snow lair is quite warm: with an external temperature of -20 ⁰C, inside the “room” it is +5 ⁰C. Baby seals stay in the shelter for five weeks. During this time, they feed only on mother's milk and do not leave it for a minute. Before the den begins to collapse, the squirrel has time to shed. The female leaves her cub only to hunt.

The lactation period for seals is about 60-75 days. It can last much longer, since it directly depends on the presence of ice cover. Before the babies begin to hunt on their own, they molt completely. At the same time, their fur turns from white to gray-silver. The color change occurs gradually and lasts about three months. In adult seals, the fur is brownish-brown in color.

The Baikal seal, starting from birth, knows how to build vents. This fact was confirmed by a specially conducted experiment. To do this, a small sheet of polystyrene foam 5 cm thick was placed directly on the water in the aquarium, while the rest of the space was left free. Several small seals, no more than two months old, began to make vents in the floating area - special holes through which they breathed, sticking their noses there. Surprisingly, the cubs did this despite the fact that there was open water next to them. However, as if not noticing this, they swam up from below, inhaled the air and again sank to the depths.

To conduct this experiment, several Baikal seal cubs, no more than two weeks old, were caught. At this age, they still feed on their mother’s milk, which means that the animals have never been immersed in water in their lives. When they grew up a little, during their first swim the seals demonstrated that the ability to make holes in the ice is their innate ability.

Another interesting fact is that this animal is capable of sleeping quite long time right in the water, while practically not moving. Sleep can continue until the oxygen in the blood runs out. It is so strong that scuba divers can swim close to the Baikal seal and even turn it over, while the animal continues to sleep peacefully. This fearlessness of seals is due to the fact that natural enemies in this ecological environment They dont have. For them, only human activity poses a real threat.

Animal hunting

The Baikal seal, the photo of which is located in this article, is the object of hunting. Its meat, fat and fur, from which hats are sewn, are especially valued. In addition, hunters often use the skin to pad their skis. Seal meat can be eaten. They also eat boiled fins, which are considered a delicacy. The meat of young individuals is the most tender and tasty.

In ancient times, seal oil was used in soap making and tanning. In 1895-1897, animal fat was used in large quantities to illuminate the mines that were part of the Lena gold mines. As for the local residents, they were sure that seal fat was medicinal, so they used it for stomach ulcers, as well as for various pulmonary diseases.

The hunting season for the Baikal seal begins in April and lasts as long as it is possible to move across the frozen lake. In addition, the animal can be caught using nets. This method is more rational, since there are no losses that occur during shooting. The fact is that wounded animals often go under the ice. Where they die. Nowadays, seal hunting is not prohibited. Every year at least 5-6 thousand seals are caught or shot.

Cause of mass death

This happened for the first time in 1987. IN Lately Some scientists have been carefully studying the causes of mass animal deaths. The diagnostics they carried out showed that the seals died due to the canine distemper virus. Interestingly, this disease affects both domestic and wild animals.

There is documented evidence that approximately one and a half thousand individuals died from distemper in 1987 and 1988. At the same time, the fishery during the 80s of the last century amounted to at least 5 thousand heads. Fortunately, the Baikal seal was not included in the Red Book, as it was noticed that the animal’s population exceeded the optimal size. In addition, such shooting, according to scientists, is even useful, as it helps reduce intraspecific competition and allows animals to gain weight faster.

Where did the seal come from on Lake Baikal?

It is believed that it penetrated from the Arctic Ocean along the Yenisei and Angara to glacial period, when the rivers were dammed by ice advancing from the north. The possibility of its penetration along the Lena, which is believed to have flowed from Lake Baikal, cannot be ruled out.

Who was the first to describe the seal (nerpa) of Baikal?

It is mentioned in the reports of the first explorers who came here in the first half of the 17th century. Scientific description first made during the work of the 2nd Kamchatka, or Great Northern, expedition led by V. Bering. As part of this expedition, a detachment worked on Lake Baikal under the leadership of I. G. Gmelin, who comprehensively studied the nature of the lake and its surroundings and described the seal.

How is the number of seals determined?

According to the Limnological Institute of the SB RAS, there are about 70 thousand seals in Baikal. Counting is being done different ways. The fastest, but less reliable, is visually from an airplane that flies along a certain route network. The census takers look out the window and mark each lair they see, or they take aerial photographs of the routes and use them to count the lairs. And then they are recalculated from a unit area to the entire water area of ​​the lake.

The second method is to lay out about 100 survey sites across Lake Baikal, each 1.5x1.5 km long. They go around them on a motorcycle or walk around them on the ice and count all the lairs that are found on the sites. Then a recalculation is also carried out for the entire water area of ​​the lake.

And finally, the route method. On two or three motorcycles, a group of surveyors travels across Lake Baikal at a certain distance from each other, sufficient to see from the motorcycle all the lairs they encounter.

IN last years The most accurate (maximum statistical error +10%) areal census of seals is used.

What is the age limit for seals in Baikal?

The highest age of the seal, determined by V.D. Pastukhov, an employee of the Limnological Institute, is 56 years for females and 52 years for males.

At what age does a seal become sexually mature?

At the age of 3-6 years it is capable of mating, producing offspring at the age of 4-7 years. Males reach sexual maturity a year or two later. Pregnancy in seals lasts 11 months. It begins with embryonic diapause - a delay in the development of the embryo in the female womb for 3-3.5 months. During her life, a female can probably bring up to two or more dozen cubs, given that she is capable of bearing offspring until the age of 40. Females usually give birth annually. However, up to 10-20% of females various reasons remain barren.

When does a seal give birth to its young?

The puppies' period lasts for more than a month - from the end of February to the beginning of April. Most seals appear in mid-March. They are born on ice, in a snowy lair. During the first period, while they are feeding on their mother’s milk, they do not dive into the water, but prefer to lie down in the den. Usually the seal gives birth to one, rarely two, cubs. The weight of a newborn is up to 4 kg. The cubs have white fur - this is their protective coloring. It allows them to remain almost invisible in the snow in the first weeks of life, while they feed on their mother’s milk. With the transition to independent feeding on fish, seals molt: the fur gradually changes color to silver-gray in two to three-month-olds, and then brownish-brown in older individuals.

How big does the Baikal seal reach?

The average weight of seals in Baikal is about 50 kg, the maximum weight of males is up to 130 kg, length - 1.7-1.8 m. Females are smaller in size - 1.3-1.6 m and weighing up to 60-70 kg Linear growth ends in seals by the age of 17-19 years, and weight loss continues for a number of years and is possible until the end of life.

How fast does the seal swim?

Maximum speed is 20-15 km/h. But she swims at such speed when she moves away from danger. In calm conditions it swims much slower - probably 10-15 km/h.

To what depths can the seal dive?

According to fishermen, seals have been caught in nets at depths of up to 200 m, but, as a rule, they dive to much shallower depths. Since the seal catches food in a well-lit area (25-30 m), it apparently does not need to dive deep.

What pressure can a seal withstand when diving to depth?

If a seal is capable of diving up to 200 m, then, therefore, it can withstand a pressure of 21 atm.

Why does the seal not suffer from decompression sickness?

Probably the main reason is that seals do not breathe under water, so the saturation of tissues, including blood, with gases remains the same as atmospheric pressure. There is no excess saturation with nitrogen, although a seal can undergo a pressure change from 1 to 10-15 atmospheres or more in half an hour.

Divers who spend a short time under water also do not experience decompression sickness, although there are known cases of record diving without equipment to a depth of 100 m or more. Probably for the same reason, whales (sperm whales), which are capable of diving to depths of up to 1200 m and withstanding a pressure of 121 atm, do not suffer from decompression sickness.

Do seals sleep in water?

According to observations, the seal sleeps in water, as it is in an immobilized state for quite a long time, probably as long as there is enough oxygen in the blood. While the seal was sleeping, scuba divers swam close to it, touched it and even turned it over, but the animal continued to sleep.

How long can a seal stay underwater?

In experimental conditions (in a large aquarium), when it was held under water, the seal remained there for up to 68 minutes (a record duration). In nature, it stays under water for up to 20-25 minutes - this is enough for it to get food or escape from danger.

Where does the seal winter?

Seals are constantly under the ice in warm water, and they breathe through holes made during the freeze-up. Young animals often use collective diving. Adult males overwinter alone, preferring smooth (not hummocky) ice.

Seals begin to crawl onto the surface of the ice only in the spring, when the sun begins to get hot, but at night they return to the water.

Females spend the winter on the ice in lairs under the snow, often in hummocky areas of Lake Baikal, and will become mothers in the spring. When a seal descends under the ice to hunt, it can only breathe through vents - spare holes in the ice. The seal takes a breather by raking the ice from below with the claws of its forelimbs. Around her lair there are up to a dozen or more auxiliary vents, which can be tens or even hundreds of meters away from the main one.

How much food does a seal need per day?

Under experimental conditions (in an aquarium), the seal's daily diet ranged from 3 to 5 kg of fish. An adult seal eats up to 1 ton of fish per year. The main food of the seal is golomyanka-goby fish. Omul enters the seal's food accidentally and in very small quantities, no more than 1-2% of the daily diet. Omul, just like grayling and whitefish, is a very energetic and fast fish, and the seal simply cannot catch up with it. And those individuals that do come across are probably weakened, and their selection only improves the population, maintaining its healthy “athletic” shape.

How and when do they hunt seals?

Usually in the spring, when the snow begins to melt from the surface and the main vents are exposed, near which the seal warms itself or rests with its newborn offspring. The hunt begins in April and continues during the spring ice drift, when you can sail on ships or boats among the ice floes on which beds are arranged. In addition to shooting, net fishing has recently become increasingly used. Special nets are installed under the ice near the main vents, and when the seal returns “home” it ends up in them. Catching with nets is more rational, since there are almost no losses, which occur during shooting, when wounded animals go under the ice and die there.

Is the seal edible?

Local residents of the shores of Lake Baikal consider seal meat and especially seal fat to be healing. Nerpa hunters - seal hunters - and Buryats consider fresh, still warm seal liver a delicacy. The meat of young seals - khubunks - is especially tender. If the meat of adult seals, even after heat treatment, retains the smell of fish, then in khubunks it is almost devoid of any foreign odors. Seal meat and fat are used in the treatment of pulmonary diseases (tuberculosis), peptic ulcers internal organs, first of all, the stomach, etc. The liver of the seal contains many vitamins.

How is seal skin used?

The skin of adult seals is used to line hunting skis with the wool facing out, to make clothing, mittens, shoes (high boots), etc.

The most beautiful, durable and expensive fur is that of three- to four-month-old seals. The color of this fur is silver-gray.

general characteristics

Average length the body of an adult seal is 165 cm (from the end of the nose to the end of the hind flippers). Weight from 50 to 130 kg, females by weight more males. Linear growth ends by the age of 17-19, and weight growth continues for a number of years and is possible until the end of life. Seals live up to 55 years.

In a calm environment, the speed of movement under water does not exceed 7-8 km/h. She swims at greater speed when she moves away from danger. On a hard surface, the seal moves quite slowly, moving with its flippers and tail. In case of danger, he jumps.

According to fishermen, seals have been caught in nets at depths of up to 200 m, but, as a rule, they dive to much shallower depths. The Baikal Limnological Museum of the Institute of Science and Technology SB RAS contains information that seals live at a depth of up to 300 meters. It finds food in a well-lit area (25-30 m) and apparently does not need to dive deep. Nerpa is capable of diving up to 200 m and can withstand pressure of 21 atm. In nature, it stays under water for up to 70 minutes - this is enough for it to get food or escape from danger.

Area

An adult seal eats up to 1 ton of fish per year. The main food of the seal is golomyanka-goby fish. Baikal omul gets into the seal's food by chance and in very small quantities, no more than 1-2% of the daily diet.

Reproduction

By the age of 3-4 years, seals become sexually mature and produce offspring at the age of 4-7 years. Males reach sexual maturity a year or two later. Pregnancy lasts 11 months, of which the first 3-5 are embryonic diapause.

During her life, a female can probably bring up to two dozen or more cubs, given that she is capable of bearing offspring until she is 40 years old. Females usually give birth annually. However, every year up to 10-20% of females remain barren for various reasons. This period extends over more than a month - from the end of February to the beginning of April.

Juveniles

Seal cubs are born in a specially prepared snow den, usually one, rarely two, in February-March. The weight of a newborn is up to 4 kg. The cub's skin is white. Hence its name - Belek. The seal spends about 4-6 weeks exclusively inside the den, feeding on its mother’s milk. During the first period, while the cub is fed with mother's milk, it does not dive into the water. By the time the lair collapses, it has almost completely shed. The mother takes care of the baby, leaving only for the duration of the hunt. In the presence of the mother, the temperature inside the den reaches +5 °C, while outside there are frosts of -15...-20 °C.

The lactation period ends after 2-2.5 months. Sometimes lactation lasts 3-3.5 months - there is a dependence on the state of the ice cover. With the transition to independent feeding on fish, the seals molt, the fur gradually changes color to silver-gray in 2-3-month-olds, and then to brown-brown in older and adult individuals.

Wintering

The seal winters on the ice in lairs under the snow in hummocky areas of Lake Baikal, often in pressure- piles of ice floes forming canopies. As ice forms on the surface of the lake, the animal creates a main air duct with a diameter of 1-2 m, maintaining it in this state, removing ice.

Ecology

The appearance of seals in Baikal

Until now, there is no single point of view among scientists about how this animal got to Baikal. Most researchers adhere to the point of view of I.D. Chersky that the seal entered Baikal from the Arctic Ocean through the Yenisei-Angara river system during the Ice Age, simultaneously with the Baikal omul. Other scientists do not exclude the possibility of its penetration along the Lena, which is believed to have flowed from Lake Baikal.

First description of the seal

It is mentioned in the reports of the first explorers who came here in the first half of the 17th century. A scientific description was first made during the 2nd Kamchatka, or Great Northern, expedition led by V. Bering. As part of this expedition, a detachment worked on Baikal under the leadership of I. G. Gmelin, who comprehensively studied the nature of the lake and its surroundings and described the seal.

According to the legend of local residents, seals were found in the Bauntovsky lakes one or two centuries ago. Assume [ Who?] that the seal got there via Lena and Vitim. Some naturalists believe [ Who?] that the seal came to the Bauntovsky lakes from Baikal and that these lakes were allegedly connected with it. However, reliable data confirming one version or another has not yet been received.

Seal population

St. John's wort is hunted mainly for cubs after the first molt.

Along with legal hunting, poaching still occurs. Particularly cruel [ ] hunting is carried out for seal cubs up to several months old, despite the fact that this is prohibited by law. Contrary to persistent assertions, the Baikal seal is still not included in the main (legal) section of the Red Book, and is listed only in the “list... of animals in need of special attention to their condition in natural environment»

Fishing has been prohibited since 1980. It is listed as a critically endangered species on the IUCN Red List.