Bearded seal vs Common Seal

Erignathus barbatus compared with Phoca vitulina

Key Differences

• Bearded seal is Not Evaluated while Common Seal is Near Threatened.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Bearded seal	Common Seal
Kingdom same	Animalia (Animals)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum same	Chordata (cordados)	Chordata (cordados)
Class same	Mammalia (mamíferos)	Mammalia (mamíferos)
Order same	Pinnipedia (Seals & Sea Lions)	Pinnipedia (Seals & Sea Lions)
Family same	Phocidae (True Seals)	Phocidae (True Seals)
Genus	Erignathus	Phoca (Harbor Seals)
Species	Erignathus barbatus	Phoca vitulina

Evolutionary Relationship

Bearded seal and Common Seal share a common ancestor at the Family level: Phocidae. (True Seals)

Conservation Status

Bearded seal

NE — Not Evaluated

Common Seal

NT — Near Threatened

Population: ~500.0K

Trend: Stable →

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Bearded seal	Common Seal
Diet	—	Carnivore
Average Lifespan	—	30 years
Average Length	—	1.7 m
Average Weight	—	80.0 kg

Habitat & Geographic Range

Bearded seal

Habitat

Typically found in diverse terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems.

Range

Distributed across Norway and Sweden.

Common Seal

Habitat

Typically found in diverse ecosystems where prey species are available.

Range

Found across Europe (7 countries) and North America (United States). Listed as Near Threatened, this species requires ongoing monitoring to prevent population decline.

Bearded seal

The Bearded seal (Erignathus barbatus) is a species in the genus Erignathus. Typically found in diverse terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems.

Common Seal

O pinípede de distribuição mais ampla, a foca-comum (Phoca vitulina) habita as costas temperadas e subárticas do Atlântico Norte e do Pacífico Norte. Os adultos atingem até 130 kg e passam tempo aproximadamente igual no mar caçando peixes, lulas e crustáceos e descansando em praias ou rochas. Seus grandes e expressivos olhos são adaptados para a visão subaquática em pouca luz. A foca-comum é uma fonte de alimento fundamental para orcas, tubarões e ursos-polares.

Shared Countries

Both species can be found in 2 countries:

🇳🇴 Norway 🇸🇪 Sweden