Why does a seal have flippers

At the same time, their hind flippers angle backward and don't rotate. This makes them fast in the water but basic belly crawlers on terra firma. Sea lions, on the other hand, are able to "walk" on land by rotating their hind flippers forward and underneath their big bodies.

This is why they are more likely to be employed in aquaria and marine shows. Finally, seals are less social than their sea-lion cousins. PS: I guarantee that someone, somewhere will get these details wrong, so two points are worth clarifying:.

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Paid Content How Hong Kong protects its sea sanctuaries. They are often seen bobbing in the surf, checking out the shoreline. Harbor seals come in a variety of colors from almost pure white to mottled gray or brown, but usually some form of color patterning is visible. Elephant seals, on the other hand, are uniformly tan colored all over, and seen only rarely within the parks.

Usually there's only one subadult animal at a time hauled out on a sandy beach undergoing its annual molt. One must travel somewhere else along the California coast to see a spectacular adult male elephant seal, with its long proboscis, or nose, for which the species is named. Fur seals and sea lions are also known as eared seals. In and around Redwood National and State Parks, the most commonly seen eared seal is the California sea lion Zalophus californianus.

These animals may be seen hauled out on off shore rocks, and occasionally on sandy beaches. All pinnipeds have four flippers, a layer of blubber, and sensitive whiskers on their snouts. The Harbor seal has all of these and a lot more. Like many marine animals, Harbor seals have streamlined fusiform bodies, tapered at both ends.

Harbor seals have spotty coats. The dorsal side has more spots then the ventral side. To move around, the Harbor seal depends on its flippers. The pectoral, or fore, flippers are short and webbed with five bony digits.

The digits are about the same length and each has a blunt claw, around one to two inches long. In the water, the fore flippers are used for steering.