Editing Earless seal (section)

{{Short description|Family of mammals}}
{{distinguish|text=[[Phocides]], a genus of butterflies, [[Pholcidae]], a family of spiders, or [[Phocoenidae]], a family of toothed whales}}
{{Automatic taxobox
| name = Earless seals<ref name=msw3>{{MSW3 Wozencraft | pages = | id = 14001028}}</ref>
| image = Seehund.jpg
| image_caption = [[Harbor seal]], ''Phoca vitulina''
| fossil_range = {{Fossil range|earliest=Chattian|Aquitanian|present}}<small>Early [[Miocene]] – [[Holocene]], possible late [[Oligocene]] record<ref name=Noriphoca>{{Cite journal|author1=Leonard Dewaele |author2=Olivier Lambert |author3=Stephen Louwye |year=2018 |title=A critical revision of the fossil record, stratigraphy and diversity of the Neogene seal genus ''Monotherium'' (Carnivora, Phocidae) |journal=Royal Society Open Science |volume=5 |issue=5 |pages=171669 |doi=10.1098/rsos.171669 |pmid=29892365 |pmc=5990722 |bibcode=2018RSOS....571669D }}</ref></small>
| taxon = Phocidae
| authority = [[John Edward Gray|Gray]], 1821
| type_genus = ''[[Phoca]]''
| type_genus_authority = [[Carl Linnaeus|Linnaeus]], 1758
| subdivision_ranks = Subfamilies
| subdivision = 
*†[[Devinophoca|Devinophocinae]]
*[[Monachinae]]
*[[Phocinae]]
}}

The '''earless seals''', '''phocids''', or '''true seals''' are one of the three main groups of [[mammal]]s within the seal lineage, [[Pinniped]]ia. All true seals are members of the family '''Phocidae''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|f|oʊ|s|ᵻ|d|iː}}). They are sometimes called '''crawling seals''' to distinguish them from the [[fur seal]]s and [[sea lion]]s of the family [[Eared seal|Otariidae]]. Seals live in the [[ocean]]s of both hemispheres and, with the exception of the more [[tropical]] [[monk seal]]s, are mostly confined to [[Polar region|polar]], subpolar, and [[temperate]] climates.  The [[Baikal seal]] is the only species of exclusively [[freshwater seal]].