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The bearded seal (''Erignathus barbatus''), also called the square flipper seal, is a medium-sized pinniped that is found in and near to the Arctic Ocean. It gets its generic name from two Greek words (''eri'' and ''gnathos'') that refer to its heavy jaw. The other part of its Linnaean name means bearded and refers to its most characteristic feature, the conspicuous and very abundant whiskers. When dry, these whiskers curl very elegantly, giving the bearded seal a "raffish" look. Fossils first described in 2002 indicated that, during the Pleistocene epoch, bearded seals ranged as far south as South Carolina. ==Description== Distinguishing features of this earless seal include square fore flippers and thick bristles on its muzzle. Adults are greyish-brown in colour, darker on the back; rarely with a few faint spots on the back or dark spots on the sides. Occasionally the face and neck are reddish-brown. Bearded seal pups are born with a greyish-brown natal fur with scattered patches of white on the back and head. The bearded seal is unique in the subfamily Phocinae in having two pairs of teats, a feature it shares with monk seals. Bearded seals reach about in nose-to-tail length and from in weight.〔(''Erignathus barbatus'' ). The Animal Diversity Web〕 The female seal is larger than the male. Bearded seals, along with ringed seals, are a major food source for polar bears. They are also an important food source for the Inuit of the Arctic coast. The Inuit language name for the seal is ''ugjuk''〔(【引用サイトリンク】title=Bearded seal )〕 (plural: ''ugjuit'') or ''oogrook'' or ''oogruk''. The Inuit preferred the ringed seal for food and light; the meat would be eaten and the blubber burnt in the ''kudlik'' (stone lamp). The skin of the bearded seal is tougher than regular seal and was used to make shoes, whips, dog sled harnesses, to cover a wooden frame boat, the ''Umiak'' and in constructing summer tents known as ''tupiq''.〔(Ugjuk — Bearded Seal )〕 The body fat content of a bearded seal is 30–40%. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Bearded seal」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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