Photo of the Day 132

Harp Seal, Gulf of St. Lawrence, Canada, 2004

Photograph by Brian Skerry

A young harp seal tests the frigid waters in Canada's Gulf of St. Lawrence. Once the object of a bitter controversy between sealers and animal-welfare groups, import restrictions on their pelts and Canadian laws protecting seal pups have helped populations of these charismatic sea mammals recover.

(Photo shot on assignment for, but not published in, "Harp Seals: The Hunt for Balance," March, 2004, National Geographic magazine)

Photo of the Day 82

Harp Seal, Gulf of Saint Lawrence, Canada, 2003

Photograph by Brian Skerry

A young fur seal looks warily around an icy whelping site in Canada's Gulf of St. Lawrence. Seals that are weaned and have shed their downy fur are called beaters for the way they beat their flippers on the water. Their sleek, unmarred pelts are prime quarry for seal hunters.

(Text adapted from and photo shot on assignment for, but not published in, "Harp Seal: The Hunt for Balance," March 2004, National Geographic magazine)