Humans have hunted seals since the Stone Age.
Originally, seals were hit with clubs during haul-out.
Eventually, seal hunters used harpoons to spear the animals from boats out at sea, and hooks for killing pups on ice or land.
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 coats, and the tusks of walruses continue to be used for carvings or as ornaments.
There is a distinction between the subsistence hunting of seals by indigenous peoples of the Arctic and commercial hunting: subsistence hunters typically use seal products for themselves and depend on them for survival.
National and international authorities have given special treatment to aboriginal hunters since their methods of killing are seen as less destructive and wasteful.
This distinction is being questioned as indigenous people are using more modern weaponry and mechanized transport to hunt with, and are selling seal products in the marketplace.
Some anthropologists argue that the term "subsistence" should also apply to these cash-based exchanges as long as they take place within local production and consumption.
More than 100,000 phocids (especially ringed seals) as well as around 10,000 walruses are harvested annually by native hunters.

Commercial sealing was historically just as important an industry as whaling.
Exploited species included harp seals, hooded seals, Caspian seals, elephant seals, walruses and all species of fur seal.
The scale of seal harvesting decreased substantially after the 1960s, after the Canadian government reduced the length of the hunting season and implemented measures to protect adult females.
Several species that were commercially exploited have rebounded in numbers; for example, Antarctic fur seals may be as numerous as they were prior to harvesting.
The northern elephant seal was hunted to near extinction 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.
Conversely, the Mediterranean monk seal was extirpated from much of its former range, which stretched from the Mediterranean to the Black Sea and northwest Africa, and only remains in the northeastern Mediterranean and some parts of northwest Africa.

Several species of pinniped continue to be harvested.
The Convention for the Conservation of Antarctic Seals allows limited hunting of crabeater seals, leopard seals and Weddell seals.
However, Weddell seal hunting is prohibited between September and February if the animal is over one year of age, to ensure breeding stocks are healthy.
Other species protected are southern elephant seals, Ross seals and Antarctic fur seals.
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.

The Caribbean monk seal has been killed and exploited by Europeans settlers and their descendants since 1494, starting with Christopher Columbus himself.
The seals were easy targets for organized sealers, fishermen, turtle hunters and buccaneers because they evolved with little pressure from terrestrial predators and were thus "genetically tame".
In the Bahamas, as many as 100 seals were slaughtered in one night.
In the mid-nineteenth century, the species was thought to have gone extinct until a small colony was found near the Yucatán Peninsula in 1886.
Seal killings continued, and the last reliable report of the animal alive was in 1952.
The IUCN declared it extinct in 1996.
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
Humans have hunted seals since the Stone Age. Originally, seals were hit with clubs during haul-out. Eventually, seal hunters used harpoons to spear the animals from boats out at sea, and hooks for killing pups on ice or land. 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 coats, and the tusks of walruses continue to be used for carvings or as ornaments. There is a distinction between the subsistence hunting of seals by indigenous peoples of the Arctic and commercial hunting: subsistence hunters typically use seal products for themselves and depend on them for survival. National and international authorities have given special treatment to aboriginal hunters since their methods of killing are seen as less destructive and wasteful. This distinction is being questioned as indigenous people are using more modern weaponry and mechanized transport to hunt with, and are selling seal products in the marketplace. Some anthropologists argue that the term "subsistence" should also apply to these cash-based exchanges as long as they take place within local production and consumption. More than 100,000 phocids (especially ringed seals) as well as around 10,000 walruses are harvested annually by native hunters.
Commercial sealing was historically just as important an industry as whaling. Exploited species included harp seals, hooded seals, Caspian seals, elephant seals, walruses and all species of fur seal. The scale of seal harvesting decreased substantially after the 1960s, after the Canadian government reduced the length of the hunting season and implemented measures to protect adult females. Several species that were commercially exploited have rebounded in numbers; for example, Antarctic fur seals may be as numerous as they were prior to harvesting. The northern elephant seal was hunted to near extinction 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. Conversely, the Mediterranean monk seal was extirpated from much of its former range, which stretched from the Mediterranean to the Black Sea and northwest Africa, and only remains in the northeastern Mediterranean and some parts of northwest Africa.
Several species of pinniped continue to be harvested. The Convention for the Conservation of Antarctic Seals allows limited hunting of crabeater seals, leopard seals and Weddell seals. However, Weddell seal hunting is prohibited between September and February if the animal is over one year of age, to ensure breeding stocks are healthy. Other species protected are southern elephant seals, Ross seals and Antarctic fur seals. 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.
The Caribbean monk seal has been killed and exploited by Europeans settlers and their descendants since 1494, starting with Christopher Columbus himself. The seals were easy targets for organized sealers, fishermen, turtle hunters and buccaneers because they evolved with little pressure from terrestrial predators and were thus "genetically tame". In the Bahamas, as many as 100 seals were slaughtered in one night. In the mid-nineteenth century, the species was thought to have gone extinct until a small colony was found near the Yucatán Peninsula in 1886. Seal killings continued, and the last reliable report of the animal alive was in 1952. The IUCN declared it extinct in 1996. 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
Pinniped