Southern Elephant Seal Mirounga leonina
The Southern Elephant Seal is widely distributed in the seas around Antarctica where it breeds on subantarctic and cold temperate islands.
Southern elephant seals, Mirounga leonina (Linnaeus, 1758), are named for their elephant trunk-like nose. Southern elephant seal adult males are larger than the females, and sizes also range within the same sex in this species.
Southern Elephant Seal (Mirounga leonina)
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Southern Elephant Seal ...
Southern elephant seal males may weigh eight to ten times more than females. This is the biggest weight difference between the sexes of any mammal.
Southern elephant seals are found all around Antarctica and breed on subantarctic islands including South Georgia, Peninsula Valdez, Heard Island, and Macquarie Island.
Southern elephant seals live in sub-Antarctic and Antarctic waters that feature brutally cold conditions but are rich in the fish, squid, and other marine foods these seals enjoy.
Southern elephant seal (Mirounga leonina)
Southern giant petrel (Macronectes giganteus)
Antarctic tern (Sterna vittata)
Kelp gull (Larus dominicanus)
Grey-headed albatross (Thalassarche chrysostoma)
Wandering albatross (Diomedea exulans) ...
Southern Elephant Seal, the largest carnivoran
ORDER CARNIVORA
Suborder Feliformia ("cat-like") ...
Southern elephant seals (Mirounga leonina) demonstrate extreme polygyny, wherein males fight for exclusive access to harems of females.
Southern elephant seals are known to travel great distances from their breeding beaches. The longest recorded journey was over 3,000 miles.
Southern Elephant Seals and King Penguins are in the background. The female below next is scratching, while another male at Gold Harbor keeps a wary eye on me.
The largest pinniped, the male southern elephant seal, can weigh as much as 5 1/2 tons. Its distinctive nose, which resembles an elephant's trunk, inflates when roaring to ward off male rivals during breeding season.
Elephant seals spend around 80% of their lives in the oceans, where the elephant seals hunt for fish, squid, octopus, eels and even small sharks. The southern elephant seal has also been known to hunt the smaller species of penguin.
 See also: Elephant, Elephant Seal, Leopard, Lion, Sea Lion
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