: any of an order or suborder (Pinnipedia) of aquatic carnivorous mammals (such as a seal or walrus) with all four limbs modified into flippers.
What does the name pinniped mean?
: any of an order or suborder (Pinnipedia) of aquatic carnivorous mammals (such as a seal or walrus) with all four limbs modified into flippers.
What does pinniped literally mean?
“a fin-footed mammal,” one having feet like fins or flippers, especially of the group of fin-footed aquatic carnivorous quadruped mammals that includes seals, sea-lions, and walruses, 1842, from Modern Latin Pinnipedia, suborder of aquatic carnivorous mammals (seals and walruses), literally “ having feet as fins ,” from ...
Where does the word pinniped come from?
Etymology. The name “pinniped” derives from the Latin words pinna “fin” and pes, pedis “foot” . The common name “seal” originates from the Old English word seolh, which is in turn derived from the Proto-Germanic *selkhaz.
What do pinnipeds feed on?
Diet is strictly carnivorous, but pinnipeds eat a variety of prey ranging in size from krill , which is filtered from the water by the complex cheek teeth, to, in the case of the leopard seal (Hydrurga leptonyx), penguins and even other pinnipeds.
What is a female seal called?
Adult males are called bulls and females are called cows , while a young seal is a pup. Immature males are sometimes called SAMs (sub-adult males) or bachelors.
What is the meaning of Apian?
: of or relating to bees .
Is a walrus a pinniped?
Walrus are the largest pinniped . Seals, sea lions, and walruses belong to a group of marine mammals called pinnipeds, referring to their flippered feet. Seals (true seals or earless seals) have no external ear flaps.
Is a dolphin a pinniped?
Modern marine mammals include: Cetacea (whales, dolphins, and porpoises), Sirenia (sea cows and dugongs) and Pinnipedia (seals, sea lions, and walruses). ... Most pinnipeds retain a substantial coat of hair , although not all. All cetaceans, including whales, dolphins, and porpoises, are descendants of land-living mammals.
What does polygynous mean?
Polygyny, marriage in which two or more women share a husband . Sororal polygyny, in which the cowives are sisters, is often the preferred form because sisters are thought to be more mutually supportive and less argumentative than nonsiblings. ... Polygyny has several economic, social, and health advantages over monogamy.
Do seals have a tail?
The bulging, rounded cone-shape between the seal’s hind flippers is a tail . ... When Harbor Seals are on land their hind flippers are often closed together but this little guy was in a lolling mood.
What is the largest pinniped?
Did you know that the largest pinniped is the elephant seal ? While walrus adult males can grow to be more than 2 tons (as much as a car), male elephant seals can weigh over 3 tons (even larger than a polar bear!).
Can seals mate with sea lions?
Unlike whales, seals and sea lions have not developed the ability to mate and give birth in the sea . Sea lions and fur seals bear their young on land.
What makes a pinniped A pinniped?
The word “pinniped” means fin- or flipper-footed and refers to the marine mammals that have front and rear flippers . This group includes seals, sea lions and walruses — animals that live in the ocean but are able to come on land for long periods of time. Millions of years ago, the ancestors of pinnipeds lived on land.
Is pinniped a suborder?
General Biology. Pinnipedia is a suborder of carnivorous mammals found exclusively in aquatic habitats. The suborder includes three recognized extant families: Odobenidae (walrus), Otoriidae (sea lions and fur seals), and Phocidae (true seals).
Do seals eat tuna?
“I’ve seen big bull sea lions eat two thirds of a 50-pound tuna in one sitting ,” says De Roy. And when the herding goes well, they might repeat that meal three or four times a day.
