Editing Pinniped (section)

==Human relations==
===In culture===
{{Further|List of fictional pinnipeds}}
[[File:Alaska Robbenfiguren 1876 Linden-Museum.jpg|thumb|[[Inuit]] seal sculptures at the [[Linden Museum]]]]
Various human cultures have for millennia depicted pinnipeds. In [[Homer]]'s ''[[Odyssey]]'', the sea god [[Proteus]] shepherds a colony of seals.{{efn|''Odyssey'', book IV, verses 404–413.}}{{sfn|Dickenson|2016|p=87}} In northern Scotland, [[Celt]]s of [[Orkney]] and the [[Hebrides]] believed in [[selkie]]s—seals that could change into humans and walk on land.<ref>{{Cite journal|url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/280883413 |title=Dugongs and Mermaids, Selkies and Seals |last=Jøn |first=A. Asbjørn|date=1998|journal=Australian Folklore: A Yearly Journal of Folklore Studies|access-date=30 October 2015|issue=13 |pages=94–98}}</ref> In [[Inuit mythology]], they are associated with the goddess [[Sedna (mythology)|Sedna]], who sometimes transformed into a seal. It was believed that marine mammals, including seals, came from her severed fingers.{{sfn|Dickenson|2016|pp=106–109}} In modern culture, pinnipeds are thought of as cute, playful and comical figures.<ref>{{cite journal|first=Sigurrós Björg|last=Sigvaldadóttir|year=2012|title=Seals as Humans—Ideas of Anthropomorphism and Disneyfication|journal=Selasetur Working Paper|number=107|url=http://www.selasetur.is/images/VIGNIR/workingpapers/no.%20%200107%20%20seals%20as%20humans%20-%20ideas%20of%20anthropomorphism%20and%20disneyfication.pdf|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160915225953/http://www.selasetur.is/images/VIGNIR/workingpapers/no.%20%200107%20%20seals%20as%20humans%20-%20ideas%20of%20anthropomorphism%20and%20disneyfication.pdf|archive-date=15 September 2016}}</ref>

===In captivity===
Pinnipeds can be found in facilities around the world, as their size and playfulness make them popular attractions.<ref name=zoo/> Seals have been kept in captivity since at least [[ancient Rome]] and their trainability was noticed by [[Pliny the Elder]].{{efn|''[[Natural History (Pliny)|Natural History]]'', book IX, XV:41–43.}} Zoologist [[Georges Cuvier]] noted during the 19th century that wild seals show considerable affection for humans and stated that they are second only to some [[monkey]]s among wild animals in their easy tamability. [[Francis Galton]] noted in his seminal work on domestication that seals were a spectacular example of an animal that would most likely never be domesticated, despite their friendliness, survivability and "desire for comfort", because they serve no practical use for humans.{{sfn|Dickenson|2016|pp=59–61}}
[[File:Kobe oji zoo 2009 April 22.jpg|thumb|right|Captive sea lion at [[Kobe Oji Zoo]] Kobe, Japan]]
Some modern exhibits have a pool with artificial haul-out sites and a rocky background, while others have seals housed in shelters located above a pool which they can jump into. More elaborate exhibits contain deep pools that can be viewed underwater with rock-mimicking cement as haul-out areas. The most popular captive pinniped is the California sea lion, due to its trainability and adaptability. Other commonly kept species include the grey seal and harbor seal. Larger animals like walruses and Steller sea lions are much less common.<ref name=zoo>{{cite book |author=Larson, S. |year=1999 |title=Encyclopedia of the World's Zoos |volume=3 |contribution=Seal and Sea lion |pages=1148–50 |publisher=Taylor & Francis |editor=Bell, C. E. |isbn=978-1-57958-174-9}}</ref> Some organizations, such as the [[Humane Society of the United States]] and [[World Animal Protection]], object to keeping marine mammals in captivity. They state that the exhibits could not be large enough to house animals that have evolved to be migratory, and a pool could never replace the size and biodiversity of the ocean. They also state that the tricks performed for audiences are "exaggerated variations of their natural behaviors" and distract the people from the animal's unnatural environment.<ref>{{cite web |title=The Case Against Marine Mammals in Captivity |publisher=[[Humane Society of the United States]] and [[World Animal Protection]] |pages=3, 18 |url=http://www.humanesociety.org/assets/pdfs/marine_mammals/case_against_marine_captivity.pdf |access-date=May 30, 2012 |archive-date=September 30, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180930105929/http://www.humanesociety.org/assets/pdfs/marine_mammals/case_against_marine_captivity.pdf |url-status=dead }}</ref>

California sea lions are used in [[Military animal|military applications]] by the [[U.S. Navy Marine Mammal Program]], including detecting [[naval mine]]s and enemy divers. In the [[Persian Gulf]], the animals have been trained to swim behind divers approaching a U.S. naval ship and attach a [[clamp (tool)|clamp]] with a rope to the diver's leg. Navy officials say that the sea lions can do this in seconds, before the enemy realizes what happened.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.usatoday.com/news/world/iraq/2003-02-16-sealions-usat_x.htm |work=[[USA Today]] |title=Sea lions called to duty in Persian Gulf |author=Leinwand, D. |date=27 February 2003 |access-date=April 28, 2010}}</ref> Organizations like [[PETA]] believe that such operations put the animals in danger.<ref>{{cite web |author=Kreider, R. |date=May 31, 2011 |title=The Real Navy Seals – and Sea Lions and Dolphins and Whales |work=ABC News |access-date=July 30, 2013 |url=https://abcnews.go.com/Blotter/navy-sea-lions-dolphins-find-mines/story?id=13693585|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20040707194629/https://www.usatoday.com/news/world/iraq/2003-02-16-sealions-usat_x.htm|archive-date=July 7, 2004}}</ref> The Navy insists that the sea lions are removed once their job is done.<ref>{{cite web |title=Frequently Asked Questions |publisher=U.S. Navy Marine Mammal Program |access-date=July 30, 2013 |url=http://www.public.navy.mil/spawar/Pacific/71500/Pages/faqs.aspx |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130619231851/http://www.public.navy.mil/SPAWAR/PACIFIC/71500/Pages/faqs.aspx |archive-date=June 19, 2013 }}</ref>

===Hunting===
{{Main|Seal hunting}}
[[File:Killing fur seals, St Paul Island.jpg|thumb|upright=1.1|Men killing northern fur seals on [[Saint Paul Island (Alaska)|Saint Paul Island]], Alaska, in the mid-1890s.]]
Humans have hunted seals since the [[Stone Age]]. Originally, seals were merely hit with clubs during haul-out. Eventually, more lethal weapons were used, like spears and harpoons. They were also trapped in nets. The use of firearms in seal hunting during the [[modern era]] drastically increased the number of killings. Pinnipeds are typically hunted for their meat and blubber. The skins of fur seals and phocids are made into [[Fur clothing|coats]], and the tusks of walruses have been used as [[ivory]].<ref name=hunting>Reeves, R. "Hunting of marine mammals" in {{harvnb|Perrin|Würsig|Thewissen|2009|pp=585–588}}</ref> There is a distinction made between the subsistence hunting of seals by [[Circumpolar peoples|indigenous peoples of the Arctic]] and commercial hunting: subsistence hunters depend on seal products for survival.{{sfn|Riedman|1990|p=115}} National and international authorities have given special treatment to aboriginal hunters since their methods of killing are seen as more sustainable and smaller in scope. However indigenous people have recently used more modern technology and are profiting more from seal products in the marketplace. Some anthropologists argue that the term "subsistence" should also apply to these activities, as long as they are local in scale. More than 100,000&nbsp;phocids (especially ringed seals) as well as around 10,000&nbsp;walruses are harvested annually by native hunters.<ref name=hunting/>

[[File:Phoca (pusa) hispida (Ringed seal) fur skin.jpg|thumb|left|upright|[[Ringed seal]] skinned coat]]
Commercial sealing rivaled [[whaling]] as an important industry throughout history. Harvested species included harp seals, hooded seals, Caspian seals, elephant seals, walruses and all species of fur seal.{{sfn|Riedman|1990|p=112}} After the 1960s, the harvesting of seals decreased substantially as an industry<ref name=hunting/> after the Canadian government implemented measures to protect female seals and restrict the hunting season.<ref name="Beckman 2012">{{cite book |author=Beckman D. W. |title=Marine Environmental Biology and Conservation |url={{google books |plainurl=y |id=vW3pbgIcnXAC |page=315}} |year=2012 |publisher=Jones & Bartlett Publishers |isbn=978-0-7637-7350-2 |page=315}}</ref> Several species that were commercially exploited have rebounded in numbers; for example, Antarctic fur seals may have reached their pre-harvesting numbers. The northern elephant seal nearly went extinct in the late 19th century, with only a small population remaining on [[Guadalupe Island]]. It has since recolonized much of its historic range, but has a [[population bottleneck]].{{sfn|Riedman|1990|p=112}} Conversely, the [[Mediterranean monk seal]] was extirpated from much of the Mediterranean and its current range is still limited.<ref>{{cite web|author1=Johnson, W. M. |author2=Karamanlidis, A. A. |author3=Dendrinos, P. |author4=de Larrinoa, P. F. |author5=Gazo, M. |author6=González, L. M. |author7=Güçlüsoy, H. |author8=Pires, R. |author9=Schnellmann, M. |title=Monk Seal Fact Files|publisher=monachus-guardian.org|access-date=September 9, 2013|url=http://www.monachus-guardian.org/factfiles/medit01.htm}}</ref>

Several species of pinniped continue to be exploited. The [[Convention for the Conservation of Antarctic Seals]] protects species within the Antarctic and surrounding waters, but allows restricted hunting of crabeater seals, leopard seals and Weddell seals. Weddell seal hunting is forbidden between September and February if the animal is older than a year, to ensure healthy population growth.{{sfn|Riedman|1990|pp=112–113}} The Government of Canada permits the hunting of harp seals. This has been met with controversy and debate. Proponents of seal hunts insist that the animals are killed humanely and the white-coated pups are not taken, while opponents argue that it is irresponsible to kill harp seals as they are already threatened by declining habitat.<ref>{{cite web |author=Noronha, C. |date=April 4, 2010 |title=Canada's harp seal hunt kicks off |publisher=NBC News |access-date=August 15, 2013 |url=http://www.nbcnews.com/id/36287113/ns/world_news-world_environment/t/canadas-harp-seal-hunt-kicks/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130921054517/http://www.nbcnews.com/id/36287113/ns/world_news-world_environment/t/canadas-harp-seal-hunt-kicks/|url-status=dead|archive-date=21 September 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |author=Gillies, R. |date=March 23, 2009 |title=Canada seal hunt begins amid controversy |work=Huffington Post |access-date=August 15, 2013 |url=http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/03/23/canada-seal-hunt-begins-a_n_178135.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130921064345/http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/03/23/canada-seal-hunt-begins-a_n_178135.html |archive-date=September 21, 2013 }}</ref>

The [[Caribbean monk seal]] has been killed and exploited by European settlers and their descendants since 1494, starting with [[Christopher Columbus]] himself. The seals were easy targets for organized sealers, fishermen, [[turtling (hunting)|turtle hunters]] and [[buccaneer]]s because they evolved with little pressure from terrestrial predators and were thus "[[Island tameness|genetically tame]]". In the [[Bahamas]], as many as 100 seals were slaughtered in one night. The species was considered to be already extinct by the mid-nineteenth century until a small colony was found near the [[Yucatán Peninsula]] in 1866. Seal killings continued, and the last reliable report of the animal alive was in 1952 at [[Serranilla Bank]]. The IUCN declared it extinct in 1996.<ref>Duffield, D. A. "Extinction, specific" in {{harvnb|Perrin|Würsig|Thewissen|2009|pp=402–404}}</ref> The [[Japanese sea lion]] was common around the Japanese islands, but [[overexploitation]] and competition from fisheries drastically decreased the population in the 1930s. The last recorded individual was a juvenile in 1974.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.biodic.go.jp/cgi-db/gen/RDB_G2000_DO.RDB_DETAIL?wamei=%a5%cb%a5%db%a5%f3%a5%a2%a5%b7%a5%ab |title=''Zalophus californianus japonicus'' (CR) |series=Red Data Book |department=Japan Integrated Biodiversity Information System |publisher=Ministry of the Environment (Japan) |access-date=20 August 2013 |language=ja |archive-url=https://archive.today/20110605064619/http://www.biodic.go.jp/rdb_fts/2000/74-081.html |archive-date=5 June 2011 |url-status=dead }} "The Japanese sea lion (''Zalophus californianus japonicus'') was common in the past around the coast of the Japanese Archipelago, but declined rapidly after the 1930s from overhunting and increased competition with commercial fisheries. The last record in Japan was a juvenile, captured in 1974 off the coast of [[Rebun Island]], northern Hokkaido."</ref>