Weddell Seal
International Day of the Seal was declared by Congress in 1982. The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) has ranked ten of the 36 species of seals as endangered or vulnerable. Factors influencing their survival include unintentional catching by commerical fisheries, marine pollution, climate change, and habitat destruction. Idea: Children could research different types of seals. They could learn about the life cycles of these marine mammals. They could read some very interesting facts about seals at: Seals.