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The spotted seal (''Phoca largha'', ''Phoca vitulina largha''),〔(Integrated Taxonomic Information System )〕 also known as the larga or largha seal, is a member of the family Phocidae, and is considered a "true seal". It inhabits ice floes and waters of the north Pacific Ocean and adjacent seas. It is primarily found along the continental shelf of the Beaufort, Chukchi, Bering and Okhotsk Seas〔Peter Saundry. 2010. (''Spotted seal'' ). Encyclopedia of Earth. topic ed. C.Michael Hogan. ed in chief C. Cleveland, National Council for Science and the Environment, Washington DC〕 and south to the northern Yellow Sea and it migrates south as far as northern Huanghai and the western Sea of Japan. It is also found in Alaska from the southeastern Bristol Bay to Demarcation Point during the ice-free seasons of summer and autumn when spotted seals mate and have pups. Smaller numbers are found in the Beaufort Sea.〔 〕 It is sometimes mistaken for the harbor seal to which it is closely related and spotted seals and harbor seals often mingle together in areas where their habitats overlap.〔 (【引用サイトリンク】title=National Marine Mammal Laboratory ) 〕 The reduction in arctic ice floes due to global warming led to concerns that the spotted seal was threatened with extinction. Studies were conducted on its population numbers, with the conclusion, as of October 15, 2009, that the spotted seal population in Alaskan waters is not currently to be listed as endangered by NOAA.〔 〕 ==Etymology== The scientific name originated in the Greek word for seal, ''phoce'', and ''larga'', the term used by the Siberian Tungus people for this seal. The English common name is comes from this seal's characteristic dark, irregularly shaped spots. Alaskan Eskimo names include ''issuriq'' (Central Alaskan Yup'ik language), ''gazigyaq'' in St. Lawrence Island Yupik, and ''qasigiaq'' in Inupiaq.〔 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「Spotted seal」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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