The Marine Mammal Middle's hospital and customer middle in Sausalito, California, has reopened to the public! Book your visit today! Tickets are free but have to be reserved on-line in advance. The phrase "pinniped" means fin- or flipper-footed and refers to the marine mammals that have front and rear flippers. Hundreds of thousands of years ago, the ancestors of pinnipeds lived on land. These had been most likely weasel- or bear-like animals that spent more and more time within the ocean and finally adapted to this marine surroundings. Pinnipeds are separated into three groups: earless seals, eared seals and walruses. This group includes seals, sea lions and walruses -- animals that stay within the ocean however are able to come back on land for long durations of time. Typically referred to as earless seals or true seals, marine mammals in the phocid family will be simply recognized by looking at their ears and flippers. They also have small front flippers and transfer on land by flopping along on their bellies, a movement called "galumphing." At sea, true seals transfer their rear flippers again and forth like a fish tail to propel themselves by way of the water. They've ear holes but no external ear flaps. You'll be able to recognize these animals by their flippers and ears. Sea lions and fur seals are part of the otariid household and are typically known as eared seals. Not like true seals, otariids have external ear flaps. Their front flippers are giant, and on land they are able to carry all 4 flippers underneath their our bodies and stroll on them. In the water, they swim using their entrance flippers like oars. They've longer flippers than sea lions, along with a luxuriant coat of fur that was so prized by hunters that it introduced large panda teddy them to the brink of extinction in the 19th century. Walruses are in a family of their very own called the odobenids. Fur seals, in spite of having the word “seal” in their name, are actually intently associated to sea lions. They have air sacs in their neck that may inflate to allow them to float as if they are wearing life preservers. Walruses are one of the biggest pinnipeds, with males reaching over 3,000 pounds. They live within the North Atlantic and Pacific oceans, in the arctic area. Both males and females have tusks and vacuum-like mouths for sucking up shellfish from the ocean ground. Canadian legal guidelines, however limited looking by the Inuit people is allowed. Walruses are protected underneath U.S. The Marine Mammal Center cares about your privacy. Read our privacy policy.
