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Southern elephant seal harem on a beach on the Kerguelen Islands. Southern elephant seal world population was estimated at 650,000 in the mid-1990s, [1] and was estimated in 2005 at between 664,000 and 740,000. [18] Studies have shown the existence of three geographic subpopulations, one in each of the three oceans.
Elephant seals or sea elephants are very large, oceangoing earless seals in the genus Mirounga.Both species, the northern elephant seal (M. angustirostris) and the southern elephant seal (M. leonina), were hunted to the brink of extinction for lamp oil by the end of the 19th century, but their numbers have since recovered.
The northern elephant seal population was estimated to be 171,000 in 2005. [1] Beginning in the 18th century, northern elephant seals were hunted extensively, almost to extinction by the end of the 19th century, being prized for oil made from their blubber, and the population may have fallen as low as only 20-40 individuals. [1]
Pinnipeds range in size from the 1.1 m (3 ft 7 in) and 50 kg (110 lb) Baikal seal to the 6 m (20 ft) and 3,700 kg (8,200 lb) male southern elephant seal, which is also the largest member of Carnivora. [1]
Elephant seals can reach over 13 feet in length and can weigh 4,400 pounds, or 2.2 tons, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. They typically live about 19 years.
The skull of the leopard seal. The leopard seal has a distinctively long and muscular body shape when compared to other seals. The overall length of adults is 2.4–3.5 m (7.9–11.5 ft) and their weight is in the range 200 to 600 kilograms (440 to 1,320 lb), making them the same length as the northern walrus but usually less than half the weight.
Researchers don’t often put electronic tags on elephant seal pups. At more than $3,000 per satellite tag, losses are just too high to risk the expensive technology. But in one recent case, it ...
Exploited species included harp seals, hooded seals, Caspian seals, elephant seals, walruses and all species of fur seal. [100] The scale of seal harvesting decreased substantially after the 1960s, [ 101 ] after the Canadian government reduced the length of the hunting season and implemented measures to protect adult females. [ 102 ]