Overview

• The hooded seal was moved from vulnerable to endangered, while bearded and harp seals were reclassified as near threatened.
• The changes were released at the IUCN annual congress in Abu Dhabi as part of a Red List update covering 172,620 species, with 48,646 considered threatened.
• IUCN identifies sea-ice loss as the leading threat in a region warming at about four times the global average.
• Rising risks include increased shipping, oil and mineral extraction, and fatal entanglement in fishing gear as thinning ice opens access.
• IUCN notes these seals rely on ice to give birth, rear pups, molt, rest, and reach feeding grounds, warning that their decline signals broader strain on Arctic marine ecosystems.