Erignathus barbatus; bearded seal

Japanese: アゴヒゲアザラシ（英語表記）Erignathus barbatus; bearded seal

The bearded seal is a seal of the genus Phoca, suborder Pinnipedia, family Phocidae, and genus Phoca. It can reach a body length of about 2.5 m, with females being slightly larger than males. Males weigh about 262 kg, and females about 361 kg. The birth length is about 1.3 m, and the birth weight is about 33.6 kg. The color of the fur varies widely from gray to brown. The newborn calves are dark in color, with four or more light bands running from the top of the head to the back. The small head and short forelimbs make the body appear large and long. The muzzle is broad and fleshy, and the nostrils are also wide. The name comes from the sensory hairs that grow densely on the snout. These hairs are extremely long, hard, and thick. The forelimbs are short, but have wide, strong claws. The four nipples on the abdomen can be retracted. They have six incisors on the upper jaw and four on the lower jaw, two canines on each jaw, and ten cheek teeth on each jaw. They give birth on the ice in open areas from mid-March to early May. At the end of the breeding season, they migrate north as the sea ice moves north, and return to their breeding grounds as the sea ice moves south from autumn to winter. They are solitary, but occasionally gather on the ice with other seals. They prey on many invertebrates, but not many fish. They are found in a circumpolar distribution in the Arctic south of 80° north latitude, and in the subarctic Bering Sea, Sea of Okhotsk, and Gulf of St. Lawrence, where they live on the ice.

Source: Encyclopaedia Britannica Concise Encyclopedia About Encyclopaedia Britannica Concise Encyclopedia Information

Japanese:

食肉目鰭脚亜目アザラシ科アゴヒゲアザラシ属。体長は約 2.5mに達し，雌は雄よりわずかに大きい。体重は雄約 262kg，雌約 361kg。出生体長は約 1.3m，出生体重は約 33.6kgである。体毛の色は変異に富み，灰色から茶色までさまざまである。出生仔は濃色で，頭頂から背部にかけて，左右に横断する4本以上の明色帯を有する。頭部が小さいことと前肢が短いことから，体が大きく長く見える。鼻口部は幅広で肉づきがよく，鼻孔も幅広い。名は吻部に密生する感覚毛に由来する。この毛はきわめて長く，硬くて太い。前肢は短いが幅がありがんじょうな爪をもつ。腹部にある4つの乳首を引込めることができる。門歯は上顎6本，下顎4本，犬歯は上顎と下顎に各2本，頬歯は上顎と下顎に各 10本である。開氷域の氷上で3月中旬から5月初旬に出産する。繁殖終期には海氷の北上に伴って北側へ回遊し，秋から冬にかけて海氷の南下に伴い繁殖域に戻る。単独で行動するが，まれに氷上で，ほかのアザラシとともに群れをなすことがある。多くの無脊椎動物を捕食し，魚類はあまり食べない。北緯 80゜以南の北極域に周極分布し，亜北極域のベーリング海，オホーツク海およびセントローレンス湾に分布し，氷上で生息する。

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