Seals and other Marine Animals
[Pinnpeds with no ears]
SEALS ARE ONE OF THE MOST AMAZING sea-creatures in the world. They live in a group of animals called pinnpeds, which means "fin footed". Other members of the pinnped family include sea-lions and walruses. The pinnpeds are powerful swimmers, and they are superbly adapted to life in the sea.
[two types and their differences]
There are 34 species of seal, which are divided into two groups: the true seal or the earless seal, and the eared seals or sea lions. True seals also cannot turn its hind flippers, so it can't climb very well on land. However, it can move surprisingly fast in the ocean, and it uses it hind flippers for swimming, The eared seal meanwhile, uses its front flippers for swimming, and it also has longer limbs than true seals, and is more agile on land. The true seal is also more suited to life in cold places then the eared seal.

[a day in a life of a seal]
A seal's day is spent doing lots of caring, hunting, and of course, eating. In the early morning, seals usually go for a swim. Next, they go to catch their breakfast. After eating, seals go for a sun-bath. Then, at about noon, the seals go back into the water for lunch. After that, adult seals go to play with their children, or older kids go out to play by themselves. They race in the water, jump and play about on the beach, and, if the seal is not careful, get eaten by a great-white shark or a killer whale! But 60% have a chance of escape. At the evening, they eat again another meal and then relax. Finally, they go to sleep, at about eleven o’ clock.

[the hunters and dangers]
The seal has a lot of hunters, including killer whales, great white sharks, and "other species of itself", like the leopard seal. But humans are actually killing more seals then any other animal. Their hunting almost led to the extinction of the northern elephant seal. The earliest people to hunt seals were the Inuit people, which usually harpooned the animal from a boat. Seals were hunted for their skin and meat. When the Europeans arrived to North America, they found out that walruses and seals had oil-which was useful at that time-in their bodies. So, they started hunting them. A huge number of pinppeds were shot from boats at that time. Nowadays, seals are hunted on the spot, usually being clubbed or shot. If the seal was not dead after being clubbed, the seal-hunter would use a pick to kill the seal with a quick blow on the head.
Humans have caused a great decline in seal population. They even continue to hunt seals today, even when there are anti-poaching laws. Tougher laws should be put in place, and reserves should be created to breed seals. Seals are very amazing animals, and humans shouldn't drive this animal into extinction.