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Harp seal pup
Harp seal pup. One-week-old harp seal (Phoca groenlandica or Pagophilus groenlandicus) lying in the snow. Harp seals are born weighing about 10 kilograms and are nursed for about 12 days. After weaning, its all-white juvenile coat will be shed for thicker white fur. They are solitary animals, only congregating in groups of up to ten thousand to migrate south to breed. The harp seal feeds on fish and crabs, and can eat as much as 5% of its body weight in fish per day. Although still hunted for its fur, the harp seal cull is regulated and its population is fairly stable. Photographed in the Gulf of Saint Lawrence, Canada.
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