Seals
In Redwall
- Alignment: Good
- Appearance: Seals look like seals in our world. They are
extremely strong and excellent swimmers.
- Diet: Seals eat fish. Lots of fish.
- Habitat: In Redwall, seals live in the northern seas, in large
groups. Their leader is called the Hawm, and the longer "Hawm"
is pronounced, the more respect is given.
- Typical Personality: As seals have only made one appearance in the
Redwall books (Pearls of Lutra), not too much is known about them.
They don't speak much, but seem honorable and helpful.
- Habits: The only language seals speak is Seal, though some otters (i.e:
the otters of Holt Ruddaring) are able to understand them.
Outside Redwall
- Classification: Species: Phoca vitulina
- Other Names: Common seal, harbor seal, spotted seal
- Appearance: Seals have fine, spotted gray or brown fur and
invisible ears. They are 140-185cm long, on average, with flippers
that are around 20cm long. Adults can weigh as much as 130 kg.
- Life Span: Female seals live as long as 30 years, but males rarely
live beyond 20 years of age.
- Diet: Seals eat squid, shrimp, and various fish, such as herring,
sand-eels, whiting and flatfish.
- Habitat: Seals mostly live in the water, but they come out on rocky
shores and inter-tidal sand banks frequently. These landing and
resting areas are called "haul-outs."
- Typical Personality: Common seals, like many seals, are playful
creatures. Bulls are aggressive and territorial, but females and pups
are generally very gentle. They are mostly solitary except when they
are in the haul-outs, where there are large groups of seals coming together
to take a break from the rough sea.
- Habits: Seals can remain underwater for up to 10 minutes, and go at
least 50 meters deep.
- Life Cycle: Pups are born once a year in June or July, though each
female usually only has one pup. They can swim and dive when they're
only a few hours old. After three or four weeks, the pups are weaned.
- Sites for Further Research: