Freshwater seal

The freshwater seals are seals which live in freshwater bodies.

The only exclusively freshwater seal species is the Baikal seal, locally named nerpa (нерпа).[1]

The others are the subspecies or colonies of regular saltwater seals. These include two subspecies of ringed seal: the Ladoga seal and the Saimaa ringed seal.

Common seals (harbor seals) are known to enter estuaries and freshwater rivers[2] in pursuit of their prey. Colonies of common seals live in some lakes, such as seals of Iliamna Lake, Alaska, trapped there a long time ago.[3] There is also a subspecies called the Ungava seal (Phoca vitulina mellonae) that comprises less than 300 individuals[4] landlocked in the fresh water of Lacs des Loups Marins, Petit Lac de Loups Marins, and Lac Bourdel in northern Quebec.[5]

California sea lions can also live in fresh water for periods of time, such as near Bonneville Dam, nearly 240 kilometres (150 mi) up the Columbia River.[6] In 2004, a healthy sea lion was found sitting on a road in Merced County, California, almost a hundred miles upstream from the San Francisco Bay and half a mile from the San Joaquin River.[7]

References
  1. Edward C M Parsons; Parsons, ECM; Bauer, A (2013). An Introduction to Marine Mammal Biology and Conservation. Jones & Bartlett. p. 118. ISBN 978-0-7637-8344-0.
  2. "Harbor seal pups swim 60 miles inland in Maine", Portland Press-Herald, June 29, 2011.
  3. Hauser, Donna D. W.; Allen, Christopher S.; Rich, Harry B.; Quinn, Thomas P. (2008). "Resident Harbor Seals (Phoca vitulina) in Iliamna Lake, Alaska: Summer Diet and Partial Consumption of Adult Sockeye Salmon (Oncorhynchus nerka)". Aquatic Mammals. 34 (3): 303–309. doi:10.1578/AM.34.3.2008.303.
  4. Turpin, Ben (23 April 2008). "Freshwater seals of Iliamna Lake photographed". Scott Dickerson Blog. Scott Dickerson photography. Retrieved 16 July 2010.
  5. Smith, Richard J.; Cox, Tara M.; Westgate, Andrew J. (17 Jan 2006). "MOVEMENTS OF HARBOR SEALS (PHOCA VITULINA MELLONAE) IN LACS DES LOUPS MARINS, QUEBEC". Marine Mammal Science. 22 (2): 485. doi:10.1111/j.1748-7692.2006.00024.x. Archived from the original on 5 January 2013. Retrieved 16 July 2010.
  6. "Columbia River Sea Lion Management: Restoring balance between predators and salmon". Washington Department of Fish & Wildlife. Archived from the original on 21 October 2017. Retrieved 23 May 2012.
  7. Kay, Jane (10 February 2012). "When good fishing trips go bad: Sea lion swims the Delta – lands on Merced County farm road". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved 3 July 2012.


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