| |
| Feeding |
| |
All pinnipeds are carnivorous, eating
fish, shellfish, squid, and other
marine creatures. Most are generalist
feeders, but some are specialists.
For example; Ross Seals and Southern
elephant seals mainly feed on squid.
Crabeater seals eat mostly krill and
Ringed seals feed almost exclusively
on crustaceans. Additionally, the
Walrus consumes molluscan prey items
by sucking the soft parts from the
shell.
Some seals will even eat warm-blooded
prey including other seals. The
leopard seal, which is probably
the most carnivorous and predatory
of all the pinnipeds, will eat penguins
and well as Crabeater and Ross Seals.
The South American sea lion also
eats penguin as well as flying seabirds
and young South American fur seals.
Steller sea lions have been recorded
eating Northern fur seal pups, Common
seal pups and birds.
|
|
|
 |
Most seals eat fish and sometimes
squid. The leopard seal, an Antarctic species,
may have the most diverse diet of all, commonly
hunting penguins and other seabirds, smaller
seals, as well as fish, squid, krill (small
shrimplike crustaceans), and other invertebrates,
as well as feeding on carcasses of dead whales.
Leopard seals sometimes hunt humans, lunging
onto ice floes to chase people who are on foot,
and also threatening scuba divers underwater.
Sea lions and walruses may occasionally kill
and eat other seals, although more commonly
sea lions eat fish, and walruses dive to the
bottom and dig for clams, worms, crustaceans,
and other organisms from the mud. Walruses have
a large “mustache” of especially
sensitive whiskers, or vibrissae, that help
them detect their food on the dark sea floor.
A big walrus can eat about 45 kg (about 100
lb) of shellfish in one day.
Crabeater seals of the Antarctic are known
to eat fish but are unusual in that they feed
primarily on krill using unique branching teeth.
The seal’s upper and lower teeth mesh
together, forming an efficient sieve that acts
similarly to the giant filtering plates of baleen
found in krill-eating whales.
|
|
|
| |
| How to watch Seal |
You can see seals from vantage points overlooking their breeding or moulting grounds or from boats. During the breeding seasons, special seal-watching trips are often available. Seals are curious animals, and will often swim up to a boat to see what is happening. They can therefore be seen from very close quarters. Some important breeding areas are closed to tourists, or accessible only with a qualified guide. |
| |
|
|
 |
Details |
|
| |
|
