Baikal Seal Skull Replica

$182.00

The skull structure of the Baikal Seal suggests it is closely related to the Caspian Seal. In addition, the morphological structures in both species suggest they are descended from Arctic Ringed Seals.

Description

Baikal Seal Skull Replica measures 6.3 inches. Baikal Seal Skull Replica is museum quality Polyurethane cast. Made in USA. Polyurethane cast of an original California Academy of Sciences specimen. 2-part skull (separate cranium and jaw). Our precise skull can be used as a teaching tool, museum skull exhibit, home décor skull, or office décor skull.

The Baikal seal, Lake Baikal seal or Pusa sibirica, is a species of earless seal endemic to Lake Baikal in Siberia, Russia. Like the Caspian seal, it is related to the Arctic ringed seal. The Baikal seal or Pusa sibiricia is one of the smallest true seals and the only exclusively freshwater pinniped species. The Baikal seal lives only in the waters of Lake Baikal.

The Baikal seal or Pusa sibiricia is one of the smallest true seals. Adults typically grow to 3 ft. 7 in. to 4 ft. 7 in. in length with a body mass from 139 to 154 lb. They have a uniform, steely-grey coat on their backs and fur with a yellowish tinge on their abdomens.

As the coat weathers, it becomes brownish. When born, the pups weigh 6.6 to 7.7 lbs. and are about 2 ft 4 in. long. Baikal seal or Pusa sibiricia have coats of white, silky, natal fur. This fur is quickly shed and exchanged for a darker coat, much like that of adults. Rarely, Baikal seals can be found with spotted coats.

Their main food source is the Golomyanka, a cottoid oil fish found only in Lake Baikal. Baikal seal or Pusa sibiricia eat more than half of the annual produced biomass of golomyanka, some 64,000 tons.

In the winter and spring, it is estimated that more than 90 percent of its food consists of golomyankas. The remaining food sources for this seal are various other fish species, especially Cottocomephorus and Kessler’s sculpin. A total of 29 fish species have been recorded in the diet. Baikal seal or Pusa sibiricia feed mainly during twilight and at night, when golomyankas occur in depths as shallow 33 feet.

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Additional information

Weight 3 lbs
Dimensions 6.3 in
Baikal Seal Facts

Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Carnivora
Clade: Pinnipedia
Family: Phocidae
Genus: Pusa
Species: P. sibirica
Binomial name: Pusa sibirica
Conservation status: Least concern