The hooded seal (Cystophora cristata) is a large species (200 kg to 400 kg) found in the northern Atlantic. In Atlantic Canada, most pups are born in March in Davis Strait and on the Front. Other hooded seals whelp in the Gulf of St. Lawrence but very little is known about the relationship between Gulf seals and those in the Front. Surveys conducted in 1990 and 1991 estimated that 80,000 pups were born in the Front as opposed to 2,000 in the Gulf of St. Lawrence. Hooded seals can be harvested in the Front but not in the Gulf of St
