Our seals

The bearded seal (Erignatus barbatus) is an Arctic species that has Svalbard as its natural habitat.

All the seals came to Polaria at five weeks old. The three females Aurora, Bella and Mai San arrived in summer 2003. Polaria has the only group of bearded seals in captivity in the world. The bearded seal was chosen because of its quiet nature and non-aggressive disposition.

At Polaria we train our seals at the same time as they are fed. They are not trained to perform or make any kind of "seal show", but to stimulate them mentally. Animals in captivity that are trained live a much better life than those that are untrained. Mainly we train the seals to co-operate with veterinary examinations, for example to come out of the water and to open their mouths. These exercises make it possible for our keepers and veterinary staff to examine the seals daily and to satisfy ourselves that they are healthy and in generally good shape. When we train the seals, we use the same methods that are used to train animals that take part in Walt Disney's films - we reward the animals when they do as we want them to do, and ignore them if they do not. This is called positive reinforcement.

The bearded seal lives in the circumpolar regions in relatively shallow waters with ice floes, and has two natural enemies. The most threatening of these is the polar bear; however walruses have been known to take bearded seals. It lives on benthonic (bottom-living) organisms, fish, crustaceans and mussels. The bearded seal becomes sexually mature at 5 years old. At this age the seal is up to 2.6 metres long and has an average weight of 270 kg for both sexes. The female is the heaviest as an adult and can reach 420 kg. They mate in May, as soon as they have given birth and have a gestation period of 10.5 to 11 months. This means that the development of the embryo is "suspended" for 1- 1.5 months after mating occurs. The bearded seal normally gives birth to one single young, every other year.

The young are born around the 1st of May and weigh 35-40 kg, and are approximately 85 cm in length. Unlike other species of seal, the bearded seal young have lost their "baby fur" as foetuses, and have fur like adults when born. They can therefore live in the water straight away after birth. The young suckle for a period of three weeks. At the same time they are very active in the water and on land, and the transition to solid food is gradual. Seal milk is almost like a high-energy drink and contains about 50% fat. Considering that the young drink around 8 litres of milk per day, it is not surprising that they gain weight at a rate of up to 4 kilos per day! Their weight is almost doubled during the first 3-4 weeks. At the same time the mother can lose up to 100-120 kg in body weight.



Some information about our seals and their special characteristics:

Bella
	Bella seems to be the most confident of the female seals. She is playful, active and trustful. She was the smallest of the females when she was captured. To begin with, Aurora and Mai San tried to force her out during feeding, but Bella soon learned to fight back. Bella is quiet, easily taught and shows good progress in her training. She is easily identified by the light coloured patches on her head and back.
Mai San
	Mai San is the most wary of the three females. She is observant and appears to enjoy her training. She is the only one of the seals that is so eager during feeding time that she makes a noise to attract attention from the keepers. When Mai San feels confident in her surroundings, she does all she has been taught almost perfectly. She also appears to be a dominant type, and demonstrates this especially towards the other females, Aurora and Bella. She has something of a temperament. Mai San has a large brown mark on her head and is completely silver-grey along her underside. She has long whiskers and red-coloured rings around her eyes. The name Mai San is Japanese and it means "dancer". Her symbol is a white square, with her name written on it in Japanese.
Aurora
	Aurora is the darling of Polaria. She is confident, active and playful. She is a tough seal, and has no respect for the boys! She runs off with their rings or their football, and hangs on their backs when they try to get them back. Aurora seems to be fearless, impatient and keen. At the same time she is observant and quick to learn. Aurora has dark lines on her face and a brown-coloured patch on her head. She is dark-coloured along her back and has small dark spots on the underside of her body. Her symbol is a turquoise half-moon.