The Marine Mammal Middle's hospital and visitor middle in Sausalito, California, has reopened to the public! E book your go to at the moment! Tickets are free but have to be reserved online upfront. The word "pinniped" means fin- or flipper-footed and refers back to the marine mammals which have entrance and rear flippers. Hundreds of thousands of years in the past, the ancestors of pinnipeds lived on land. These have been in all probability weasel- or bear-like animals that spent increasingly more time within the ocean and ultimately adapted to this marine environment. Pinnipeds are separated into three groups: earless seals, eared seals and walruses. This group consists of seals, sea lions and walruses -- animals that stay in the ocean but are ready to come on land for long durations of time. Typically referred to as earless seals or true seals, marine mammals within the phocid household can be simply identified by looking at their ears and flippers. They also have small front flippers and transfer on land by flopping alongside on their bellies, a motion known as panda teddy bear online "galumphing." At sea, true seals move their rear flippers again and forth like a fish tail to propel themselves by means of the water. They have ear holes but no external ear flaps. You may recognize these animals by their flippers and ears. Sea lions and fur seals are part of the otariid family and are typically known as eared seals. Not like true seals, otariids have external ear flaps. Their front flippers are large, and on land they're able to carry all 4 flippers beneath their bodies and stroll on them. Within the water, they swim utilizing their entrance flippers like oars. They have longer flippers than sea lions, along with a luxuriant coat of fur that was so prized by hunters that it introduced them to the brink of extinction within the 19th century. Walruses are in a family of their very own known as the odobenids. Fur seals, in spite of getting the phrase “seal” in their title, are actually closely related to sea lions. They have air sacs of their neck that can inflate to permit them to float as if they are wearing life preservers. Walruses are one of the largest pinnipeds, with males reaching over 3,000 pounds. They reside in the North Atlantic and Pacific oceans, within the arctic region. Both males and females have tusks and vacuum-like mouths for sucking up shellfish from the ocean flooring. Canadian legal guidelines, however limited searching by the Inuit individuals is allowed. Walruses are protected underneath U.S. The Marine Mammal Middle cares about your privateness. Learn our privateness coverage.