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The grey seal ( Halichoerus grypus) is a large of the family , which are commonly referred to as "true seals" or "earless seals". The only species classified in the Halichoerus, it is found on both shores of the North . In , Halichoerus grypus means "hook-nosed sea pig". Its name is spelled gray seal in the ; it is also known as Atlantic seal and the horsehead seal.

(1984). 9780871130136, Atlantic Monthly Press Publishing.


Taxonomy
There are two recognized subspecies of this seal:
Baltic Sea
western North Atlantic stock (eastern Canada and the northeastern United States), the eastern North Atlantic stock (British Isles, Iceland, Norway, Denmark, the Faroe Islands, and Russia)

The type specimen of H. g. grypus (Zoological Museum of Copenhagen specimen ZMUC M11-1525, caught in 1788 off the island of , Danish part of the ) was believed lost for many years, but was rediscovered in 2016, and a DNA test showed it belonged to a Baltic Sea specimen rather than from Greenland, as had previously been assumed (because it was first described in ' book on the animals in Greenland: Fauna Groenlandica). The name H. g. grypus was therefore transferred to the Baltic subspecies (replacing H. g. macrorhynchus), and the name H. g. atlantica resurrected for the Atlantic subspecies.

Molecular studies have indicated that the eastern and western Atlantic populations have been genetically distinct for at least one million years, and could potentially be considered separate subspecies.


Description
This is a fairly large seal, with bulls in the eastern Atlantic populations reaching long and weighing ; the cows are much smaller, typically long and in weight.
(1978). 9789251005149, Food & Agriculture Org.. .
Individuals from the western Atlantic are often much larger, with males averaging up to and reaching a weight of as much as and females averaging up to and sometimes weighing up to . Record-sized bull grey seals can reach about in length.
(1986). 9780709932680, Croom Helm.
A common average weight in was found to be about for males and for females whereas in , , adult males averaged and adult females averaged . It is distinguished from the smaller by its straight head profile, nostrils set well apart, and fewer spots on its body. Wintering can be confused with grey seals as they are about the same size and somewhat share a large-nosed look but the hooded has a paler base colour and usually evidences a stronger spotting.
(2025). 9780080919935, Academic Press. .
Grey seals lack external ear flaps and characteristically have large snouts.
(2025). 9780133170634, Pearson.
Bull greys have larger noses and a less curved profile than harbor seal bulls. Males are generally darker than females, with lighter patches and often scarring around the neck. Females are silver grey to brown with dark patches.


Ecology and distribution
In the and , the grey seal breeds in several colonies on and around the coasts. Notably large colonies are at in , in , the off the Northumberland Coast (about 6,000 animals), and . off the north coast of , off the coast of in the , the Isle of Man, (off the coast of , ). In the , colonies exist off the islands , and on . Large numbers of grey seals (alongside their cousins) have recently commenced a recolonisation of the tidal section of the in ; a survey conducted by the ZSL in 2024 found that around 3,000 grey seals were living in the area.

In the western North Atlantic, the grey seal is typically found in large numbers in the coastal waters of the of and south to in the United States. In coastal Canada, it is typically seen in areas such as the Gulf of St. Lawrence, Newfoundland, Prince Edward Island, and . The largest colony in the world is at , . In the United States, it is found year-round off the coast of , in particular and . It has also been observed in the waters around , New York and . Archaeological evidence confirms grey seals in southern with remains found on , Martha's Vineyard, and near the mouth of the in New Haven, Connecticut. Its natural range now extends much further south than previously thought, with confirmed sightings off of . Also, there is a report by of historic breeding colonies as far south as , North Carolina.

An isolated population exists in the , forming the H. grypus balticus subspecies.

Besides these very large colonies, many much smaller ones exist, some of which are well-known tourist attractions, despite their small size. Such colonies include one on the , .

During the winter months, grey seals can be seen on rocks, islands, and shoals not far from shore, occasionally coming ashore to rest. In the spring, recently weaned pups and yearlings occasionally strand on beaches after becoming separated from their group.

Grey seals are vulnerable to typical predators for a pinniped mammal; their primary predator would be the or killer whale, but certain large species of sharks are known to prey on grey seals in waters, particularly great white sharks and but also, upon evidence, additionally . Some grey seal carcasses have washed ashore with visible "cookie cutter" bite marks, a telltale sign of attack by a Greenland shark (also called the sleeper shark). In the waters of , grey seals are a fairly common prey species for . In the Baltic, grey seal pups are prey for White-tailed eagles, and Great black-backed gulls.


Diet
The grey seal feeds on a wide variety of , mostly or species, taken at depths down to 70 m (230 ft) or more. ( Ammodytes spp) are important in its diet in many localities. and other , , , and skates
(2025). 9781604561838, Nova Science Publishers.
are also important locally. However, it is clear that the grey seal will eat whatever is available, including and . The average daily food requirement is estimated to be 5 kg (11 lb), though the seal does not feed every day and it fasts during the breeding season.

Recent observations and studies from Scotland, The Netherlands, and Germany show that grey seals will also prey and feed on large animals like and . In 2014, a male grey seal in the was documented and filmed killing and cannibalising 11 pups of his own species over the course of a week. Similar wounds on the carcasses of pups found elsewhere in the region suggest that and may not be uncommon in grey seals. Male grey seals may engage in such behaviour potentially as a way of increasing reproductive success through access to easy prey without leaving prime territory.


Communication
While it was originally understood that marine mammals communicate vocally, new research conducted by researchers at Monash University shows that grey seals clap their flippers as another form of communication. They clap their flippers underwater to deter a predator from attacking. If done during the mating season, the clapping can be used as a way to find a potential mate. The Monash researchers point out that seals are typically known for clapping, so this behaviour may not be a surprise, but the clapping we know typically occurs in captivity. Clapping seals are associated with aquariums and zoos, but were never observed in the wild for this behaviour. They were astonished at how loud these marine mammals were able to clap underwater, but it is logical for the reasons they do this.


Reproduction
Grey seals are capital breeders; they forage to build up stored blubber, which is utilised when they are breeding and weaning their pups, as they do not forage for food at this time. They give birth to a single pup every year, with females' reproductive years beginning as early as 4 years old and extending up to 30 years of age. All parental care is provided by the female. During breeding, males do not provide parental care but they defend females against other males for mating. The pups are born at around the mass of 14 kg. They are born in autumn (September to December) in the eastern Atlantic and in winter (January to February) in the west, with a dense, soft silky white fur; at first small, they rapidly fatten up on their mothers' extremely fat-rich milk. The milk can consist of up to 60% fat. Grey seal pups are precocial, with mothers returning to the sea to forage once pups are weaned. Pups also undergo a post-weaning fast before leaving the land and learning to swim. Within a month or so they shed the pup fur, grow dense waterproof adult fur, and leave for the sea to learn to fish for themselves. In recent years, the number of grey seals has been on the rise in the west and the U.S. and there have been calls for a seal cull.

Seal pup first-year survival rates are estimated to vary from 80 to 85% to below 50% depending on location and conditions. Starvation, due to difficulties in learning to feed, appears to be the main cause of pup death.

Male grey seals engage in aggressive sexual behaviour, which can lead to severe injuries and even death for the female. Sometimes they will also target females from other seal species. In the , multiple cases were recorded of pregnant harbour seals dying as a result of forced copulation with male grey seals.


Status
After near extirpation from hunting grey seals for oil, meat, and skins in the United States, sightings began to increase in the late 1980s. Bounties were paid on all kinds of seals up until 1945 in and 1962 in . One year after Congress passed the 1972 Marine Mammal Protection Act preventing the harming or harassing of seals, a survey of the entire Maine coast found only 30 grey seals. At first grey seal populations increased slowly but then rebounded from islands off Maine to and off of southern . The southernmost breeding colony was established on with five pups born in 1988 and over 2,000 counted in 2008. According to a genetics study, the United States population has formed as a result of recolonisation by Canadian seals. By 2009, thousands of grey seals had taken up residence on or near popular swimming beaches on outer Cape Cod, resulting in sightings of great white sharks drawn close to shore to hunt the seals. A count of 15,756 grey seals in southeastern Massachusetts coastal waters was made in 2011 by the National Marine Fisheries Service. Grey seals are being seen increasingly in New York and waters, and it is expected that they will establish colonies further south.

Human noise pollution continues to affect marine-life communication but remains an understudied facet of marine conservation efforts. In more recent years, the potential negative effect of human noise has been highlighted with the discovery of seals using clapping as a form of communication.

In the UK seals are protected under the Conservation of Seals Act 1970; however, it does not apply to . In the UK there have also been calls for a cull from some fishermen claiming that stocks have declined due to the seals.

The population in the increased about 8% per year between 1990 and the mid-2000s, with the numbers becoming stagnant since 2005. As of 2011, hunting grey seals is legal in and , with 50% of the quota being used. Other anthropogenic causes of death include drowning in fishing gear.


Captivity
Grey seals have proved amenable to life in captivity and are commonly found as zoo animals around their native range, particularly in Europe. Traditionally they were popular circus animals and often used in performances such as balancing and display acts.


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