The cold waters of the seas wash over the rocky shore. And on the shore, as on the beach, there are strange animals. They have a round mustachioed head, round eyes, and flippers instead of paws. These are seals.
Their backs and sides are dark and spotted, and their bellies are light. But now, pushing off the ground with their flippers and writhing with their whole body, the seals will clumsily crawl towards the sea. It is very inconvenient for seals to move on the ground. But they are real acrobats in the water!
Seals swim no worse than the fish they hunt. They eat not only fish, but shrimps, crabs, and shellfish. The seal dives to a depth of 100 meters. He will breathe in air and can stay underwater for a very long time.
And he’s not cold at all in the icy water. In addition to the dense waterproof fur, the seal has a thick layer of fat under the skin. You can swim in the water or lie on an ice floe. And in summer, the seal’s fat layer is less than in winter.
Seals do not like to swim very far into the open sea, they prefer to frolic in coastal waters. But in the north, they often travel with drifting ice.
In the spring, among the snow and ice, babies are born. Their fur coat is fluffy and often white, like snow. Only the noses and eyes are dark. That’s why babies are called “squirrels”. In their white fur coats, they are not visible to predators.
While the babies are growing and gaining strength, they drink milk. And it is very fatty and nutritious. When the kids grow into adult seals, they will change their children’s fur coat – now it will be dark, sometimes with spots or other coloring.
And now the young seals are diving, fishing and sticking their round muzzles out of the water with surprised round eyes.
