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hooded seal
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A young “blueback” hooded seal rests on an ice floe. Prized for their pelts, meat, and oils, hooded seals have not been legally traded within the European Union since 1983.
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A young “blueback” hooded seal rests on an ice floe. Prized for their pelts, meat, and oils, hooded seals have not been legally traded within the European Union since 1983.
A young “blueback” hooded seal rests on an ice floe. Prized for their pelts, meat, and oils, hooded seals have not been legally traded within the European Union since 1983.

hooded seal

mammal
Also known as: Cystophora cristata, bladdernose seal
Written by
Serge Lariviere
Director General, Cree Hunters and Trappers Income Security Board, Sainte-Foy, Quebec, Canada.
Serge Lariviere
Fact-checked by
Britannica Editors
Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree....
Britannica Editors
History

hooded seal, (Cystophora cristata), large grayish seal with dark spots that is found in open waters of the North Atlantic and Arctic oceans. Hooded seals range from the Svalbard archipelago and the Barents Sea to the Gulf of St. Lawrence. Average-sized adult males measure about 2.6 metres (8.5 feet) long and typically weigh between 300 and 400 kg (660 and 880 pounds), whereas average-sized females measure 2.2 metres (7 feet) and weigh between 160 and...

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