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Mirounga leoninasouthern elephant seal

By Maelan Hauswirth

Ge­o­graphic Range

South­ern ele­phant seals (Mirounga leon­ina) in­habit large por­tions of the south­ern hemi­sphere. This in­cludes lands in Antarc­tica and is­lands in the south­ern part of Africa, South Amer­ica, and Aus­tralia. When for­ag­ing for food, South­ern ele­phant seals travel be­tween 40 de­grees lat­i­tude south and the con­ti­nent of Antarc­tica. They spend their time in the Pa­cific, At­lantic, and In­dian oceans. They only come to land when they breed, give birth, and take care of their off­spring. (Acevedo, et al., 2016; Car­rick, et al., 1962; Hofmeyr, 2015; Oceana, 2019)

Habi­tat

South­ern ele­phant seals live on land only when molt­ing, breed­ing, and giv­ing birth. When on land, they stay on beaches close to the ocean. They feed in the Pa­cific, At­lantic, and In­dian oceans and can dive up to 1,000 m deep, even reach­ing the sea floor in areas. When they rest out in the ocean it is on ice. (Acevedo, et al., 2016; Hoff, et al., 2017; Hofmeyr, 2015; Rod­house, et al., 1992)

  • Terrestrial Biomes
  • icecap
  • Range elevation
    50 (high) m
    164.04 (high) ft
  • Range depth
    200 to 1000 m
    656.17 to 3280.84 ft

Phys­i­cal De­scrip­tion

In South­ern ele­phant seals, males are big­ger than fe­males and grow the sig­na­ture pro­boscis on their faces. Older males will usu­ally have more scars on their necks from fight­ing with other males. Males can grow up to 6 m long and weigh more than 3,700 kg. Fe­males can grow up to just above 2 m long. Both males and fe­males have short, brown fur, but when they molt, it ex­poses their grey skin. South­ern ele­phant seals are en­dother­mic, mean­ing they pro­duce their own heat. Their tor­pedo-like shape and wide rear flip­pers make them strong swim­mers. (Car­rick, et al., 1962; Hofmeyr, 2015; Oceana, 2019)

  • Sexual Dimorphism
  • male larger
  • sexes shaped differently
  • ornamentation
  • Range mass
    400 to 3700 kg
    881.06 to 8149.78 lb
  • Range length
    2.8 to 6 m
    9.19 to 19.69 ft
  • Average length
    4.5 m
    14.76 ft

Re­pro­duc­tion

South­ern ele­phant seals form harems of fe­males, which are con­trolled by one breed­ing bull if the harem has less than 50 fe­males. As harem size in­creases to over 50 fe­males, more breed­ing males con­trol the harem. Breed­ing bulls pro­tect their harem of fe­males and after 3 to 5 weeks, mat­ing be­gins. Older and more ex­pe­ri­enced males usu­ally con­trol harems, but other younger and less ex­pe­ri­enced bulls may try to in­trude and mate with fe­males. (Car­rick, et al., 1962)

South­ern ele­phant seals breed once a year. This can occur at the end of Sep­tem­ber, but usu­ally oc­curs from mid-to-late Oc­to­ber. This time pe­riod is when fe­males are in es­trus and are most fer­tile. Fe­males usu­ally give birth to one pup, but on rare oc­ca­sions they have twins. Ele­phant seals do not im­plant eggs until 4 months after mat­ing and all of the pups are born about the same time 7 months later. Fe­male pups weigh 24 to 50 kg at birth and males weigh 27 to 53 pounds at birth. Once pups are born, it takes an av­er­age of 22 days for them to be­come weaned. About 6 to 7 weeks after they are born they are con­sid­ered in­de­pen­dent. Fe­male south­ern ele­phant seals reach re­pro­duc­tive ma­tu­rity be­tween 3 and 6 years old and males reach ma­tu­rity be­tween 5 and 8 years old. (An­der­son, 2003; Cal­i­for­nia De­part­ment of Parks and Recre­ation, 2020; Car­rick, et al., 1962)

  • Breeding interval
    Southern elephant seals breed once a year.
  • Breeding season
    Mating can occur at the end of September, but usually occurs mid-to-late October.
  • Range number of offspring
    1 to 2
  • Average number of offspring
    1
  • Average number of offspring
    1
    AnAge
  • Average gestation period
    7 months
  • Average gestation period
    220 days
    AnAge
  • Range weaning age
    18 to 27 days
  • Average weaning age
    22 days
  • Range time to independence
    6 to 7 weeks
  • Average time to independence
    7 weeks
  • Range age at sexual or reproductive maturity (female)
    3 to 6 years
  • Average age at sexual or reproductive maturity (female)
    4 years
  • Range age at sexual or reproductive maturity (male)
    5 to 8 years
  • Average age at sexual or reproductive maturity (male)
    6 years

Fe­male south­ern ele­phant seals swim ashore be­fore their pups are born. Once their pups are born, they feed them milk and pro­tect them. After 3 to 5 weeks, fe­males fin­ish wean­ing their pups. Since it takes about a year to ges­tate, birth, and wean their pups, mat­ing be­gins around the same time as wean­ing. After mat­ing, fe­males go into the ocean to feed and does not re­turn to her pup. Small groups of weaned pups are guarded by bach­e­lor seals, but off­spring can some­times be killed by other adult males. Once all of the adults leave the beach, the pups will even­tu­ally ven­ture out to the ocean to look for food once they are hun­gry. (An­der­son, 2003; Car­rick, et al., 1962)

  • Parental Investment
  • precocial
  • female parental care
  • pre-fertilization
    • protecting
      • male
  • pre-weaning/fledging
    • provisioning
      • female
    • protecting
      • female
  • pre-independence
    • protecting
      • male

Lifes­pan/Longevity

Male south­ern ele­phant seals can live to be 14 years old while fe­males can live to be 20 years old. On av­er­age, south­ern ele­phant seals live about 9.5 years. (Cal­i­for­nia De­part­ment of Parks and Recre­ation, 2020; Car­rick, et al., 1962; Hofmeyr, 2015)

  • Range lifespan
    Status: wild
    14 to 20 years
  • Typical lifespan
    Status: wild
    14 to 20 years
  • Average lifespan
    Status: wild
    9.5 years

Be­hav­ior

The only time south­ern ele­phant seals gather in large num­bers is when they come back on land to give birth, mate, and molt their fur. While on land, fe­males give birth and nurse their pups for 3 weeks. Dur­ing that time, older male bulls and moth­ers will guard the ba­bies. Once pups have been nurs­ing for 3 weeks, males start to form harems and fight over fe­males, which can re­sult in some ba­bies being tram­pled. Older males fight for con­trol over groups of fe­males and this can in­clude bloody fights, where males will run into one an­other and bite each other on the neck, leav­ing gashes and scars. When fight­ing, males will aim for the pro­boscis of their op­po­nents and try to pin their op­po­nents to the ground. Losers are forced to re­treat. Dur­ing the day, south­ern ele­phant seals may go into tor­por to con­serve en­ergy. (Car­rick, et al., 1962; Hofmeyr, 2015)

  • Average territory size
    71,553,412 km^2

Home Range

South­ern ele­phant seals in­habit a large por­tion of the south­ern hemi­sphere, but major breed­ing pop­u­la­tions are lo­cated on sub-Antarc­tic is­lands and in Antarc­tica. They are also found on the Valdes Penin­sula in South Amer­ica. (Acevedo, et al., 2016; Car­rick, et al., 1962; Hofmeyr, 2015)

Com­mu­ni­ca­tion and Per­cep­tion

Male south­ern ele­phant seals will chal­lenge each other by using their pro­boscises to make a roar­ing sound. They will also raise up on their hind fins to show off their size. Op­po­nents in­spect each other and, if they de­cide to fight, will lunge at each other with their mouths open. Losers re­treat and let out high pitched cries. (Car­rick, et al., 1962)

Food Habits

South­ern ele­phant seals are car­ni­vores who mostly eat squids, such as glacial squid (Psy­chro­teuthis glacialis) and smooth hooked squid (Fil­ip­povia knipovitchi), as well as var­i­ous species of fish. South­ern ele­phant seals are able to dive to great depths in the ocean in order to find food. They do not eat dur­ing the pe­riod when they give birth and mate, so they eat and build up fat stores through­out the rest of the year. These fat stores help them stay warm in the cold ocean water. (Acevedo, et al., 2016; Car­rick, et al., 1962; Oceana, 2019)

  • Animal Foods
  • fish
  • mollusks

Pre­da­tion

South­ern ele­phant seals can some­times be­come by­catch in fish­ing lines and be killed. Their main preda­tors are orcas (Or­ci­nus orca), some big sharks, and leop­ard seals (Hy­drurga lep­tonyx). South­ern ele­phant seals fight back with their teeth, or swim away when they en­counter preda­tor. (Hoff, et al., 2017; Oceana, 2019)

  • Known Predators
    • Killer whale (Orcinus orca) and leopard seal (Hydruga leptonyx)

Ecosys­tem Roles

South­ern ele­phant seals are large preda­tors in the ocean and feed on other fish and squid. How­ever, this causes a min­i­mal im­pact on the pop­u­la­tions of these species. (Car­rick, et al., 1962; Hoff, et al., 2017; Oceana, 2019)

Species Used as Host
  • None
Mu­tu­al­ist Species
  • None
Com­men­sal/Par­a­sitic Species
  • None

Eco­nomic Im­por­tance for Hu­mans: Pos­i­tive

South­ern ele­phant seals were hunted by in­dige­nous peo­ple in Aus­tralia and South Amer­ica for thou­sands of years, but from the early 19th cen­tury until 1964, they were heav­ily har­vested by com­mer­cial com­pa­nies want­ing to turn their blub­ber into oil. Nowa­days, peo­ple pay to see them when they are beached and sleep­ing in the sand. (Cal­i­for­nia De­part­ment of Parks and Recre­ation, 2020; Hofmeyr, 2015)

  • Positive Impacts
  • body parts are source of valuable material
  • ecotourism
  • research and education

Eco­nomic Im­por­tance for Hu­mans: Neg­a­tive

South­ern ele­phant seals are large an­i­mals, and could po­ten­tially kill or harm a per­son if they were to come too close. Also, deep sea fish­eries can have their fish­ing equip­ment dam­aged when south­ern ele­phant seals ac­ci­den­tally get caught up in fish­ing lines. (Cal­i­for­nia De­part­ment of Parks and Recre­ation, 2020)

Con­ser­va­tion Sta­tus

Ac­cord­ing to the IUCN Redlist, south­ern ele­phant seals are listed as least con­cern be­cause their cur­rent pop­u­la­tion has a sta­ble trend, is not se­verely frag­mented, and has had no ex­treme fluc­tu­a­tions. The south­ern ele­phant seal is listed under Ap­pen­dix II of CITES. (Con­ven­tion on In­ter­na­tional Trade in En­dan­gered Species, 2019; Hofmeyr, 2015)

Con­trib­u­tors

Mae­lan Hauswirth (au­thor), Col­orado State Uni­ver­sity, Brooke Berger (ed­i­tor), Col­orado State Uni­ver­sity, Galen Bur­rell (ed­i­tor), Spe­cial Pro­jects.

Glossary

Antarctica

lives on Antarctica, the southernmost continent which sits astride the southern pole.

Atlantic Ocean

the body of water between Africa, Europe, the southern ocean (above 60 degrees south latitude), and the western hemisphere. It is the second largest ocean in the world after the Pacific Ocean.

World Map

Australian

Living in Australia, New Zealand, Tasmania, New Guinea and associated islands.

World Map

Ethiopian

living in sub-Saharan Africa (south of 30 degrees north) and Madagascar.

World Map

Neotropical

living in the southern part of the New World. In other words, Central and South America.

World Map

Pacific Ocean

body of water between the southern ocean (above 60 degrees south latitude), Australia, Asia, and the western hemisphere. This is the world's largest ocean, covering about 28% of the world's surface.

World Map

acoustic

uses sound to communicate

benthic

Referring to an animal that lives on or near the bottom of a body of water. Also an aquatic biome consisting of the ocean bottom below the pelagic and coastal zones. Bottom habitats in the very deepest oceans (below 9000 m) are sometimes referred to as the abyssal zone. see also oceanic vent.

bilateral symmetry

having body symmetry such that the animal can be divided in one plane into two mirror-image halves. Animals with bilateral symmetry have dorsal and ventral sides, as well as anterior and posterior ends. Synapomorphy of the Bilateria.

carnivore

an animal that mainly eats meat

chemical

uses smells or other chemicals to communicate

coastal

the nearshore aquatic habitats near a coast, or shoreline.

colonial

used loosely to describe any group of organisms living together or in close proximity to each other - for example nesting shorebirds that live in large colonies. More specifically refers to a group of organisms in which members act as specialized subunits (a continuous, modular society) - as in clonal organisms.

delayed implantation

in mammals, a condition in which a fertilized egg reaches the uterus but delays its implantation in the uterine lining, sometimes for several months.

diurnal
  1. active during the day, 2. lasting for one day.
dominance hierarchies

ranking system or pecking order among members of a long-term social group, where dominance status affects access to resources or mates

ecotourism

humans benefit economically by promoting tourism that focuses on the appreciation of natural areas or animals. Ecotourism implies that there are existing programs that profit from the appreciation of natural areas or animals.

endothermic

animals that use metabolically generated heat to regulate body temperature independently of ambient temperature. Endothermy is a synapomorphy of the Mammalia, although it may have arisen in a (now extinct) synapsid ancestor; the fossil record does not distinguish these possibilities. Convergent in birds.

female parental care

parental care is carried out by females

fertilization

union of egg and spermatozoan

migratory

makes seasonal movements between breeding and wintering grounds

molluscivore

eats mollusks, members of Phylum Mollusca

motile

having the capacity to move from one place to another.

natatorial

specialized for swimming

native range

the area in which the animal is naturally found, the region in which it is endemic.

nomadic

generally wanders from place to place, usually within a well-defined range.

oceanic islands

islands that are not part of continental shelf areas, they are not, and have never been, connected to a continental land mass, most typically these are volcanic islands.

pelagic

An aquatic biome consisting of the open ocean, far from land, does not include sea bottom (benthic zone).

piscivore

an animal that mainly eats fish

polar

the regions of the earth that surround the north and south poles, from the north pole to 60 degrees north and from the south pole to 60 degrees south.

polygynandrous

the kind of polygamy in which a female pairs with several males, each of which also pairs with several different females.

polygynous

having more than one female as a mate at one time

saltwater or marine

mainly lives in oceans, seas, or other bodies of salt water.

seasonal breeding

breeding is confined to a particular season

sexual

reproduction that includes combining the genetic contribution of two individuals, a male and a female

sexual ornamentation

one of the sexes (usually males) has special physical structures used in courting the other sex or fighting the same sex. For example: antlers, elongated tails, special spurs.

tactile

uses touch to communicate

terrestrial

Living on the ground.

territorial

defends an area within the home range, occupied by a single animals or group of animals of the same species and held through overt defense, display, or advertisement

visual

uses sight to communicate

viviparous

reproduction in which fertilization and development take place within the female body and the developing embryo derives nourishment from the female.

young precocial

young are relatively well-developed when born

Ref­er­ences

Acevedo, J., A. Aguayo-Lobo, J. Brito, D. Tor­res, B. Cáceres, A. Vila, M. Cardeña, P. Acuña. 2016. Re­view of the cur­rent dis­tri­b­u­tion of south­ern ele­phant seals in the east­ern South Pa­cific. New Zealand Jour­nal of Ma­rine and Fresh­wa­ter Re­search, Vol­ume 50/ Issue 2: 240-258. Ac­cessed March 10, 2020 at https://​www.​tandfonline.​com/​doi/​full/​10.​1080/​00288330.​2015.​1132746.

An­der­son, G. 2003. "Ele­phant Seal Re­pro­duc­tion" (On-line). Ma­rine Sci­ence. Ac­cessed March 03, 2020 at http://​marinebio.​net/​marinescience/​05nekton/​esrepro.​htm.

Cal­i­for­nia De­part­ment of Parks and Recre­ation, 2020. "Ele­phant Seals" (On-line). Cal­i­for­nia De­part­ment of Parks and Recre­ation. Ac­cessed March 03, 2020 at https://​www.​parks.​ca.​gov/?​page_​id=1115.

Car­rick, R., S. Csor­das, S. In­g­ham. 1962. "Stud­ies on the South­ern Ele­phant Seal, mirounga leo­ni­ata" (On-line pdf). Ac­cessed March 03, 2020 at https://​www.​publish.​csiro.​au/​wr/​pdf/​CWR9620161.

Con­ven­tion on In­ter­na­tional Trade in En­dan­gered Species, 2019. "Ap­pen­dices" (On-line). Con­ven­tion on In­ter­na­tional Trade in En­dan­gered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora. Ac­cessed March 09, 2020 at https://​www.​cites.​org/​eng/​app/​appendices.​php.

Hoff, J., R. Kil­patrick, D. Wels­ford. 2017. South­ern ele­phant seals (Mirounga leon­ina Linn.) depre­date tooth­fish long­lines in the mid­night zone. PLoS ONE, 12/2: 1-13. Ac­cessed March 10, 2020 at https://​journals.​plos.​org/​plosone/​article?​id=10.​1371/​journal.​pone.​0172396.

Hofmeyr, G. 2015. "South­ern Ele­phant Seal" (On-line). IUCN Redlist. Ac­cessed March 03, 2020 at https://​www.​iucnredlist.​org/​species/​13583/​45227247.

Oceana, 2019. "South­ern Ele­phant Seal" (On-line). Oceana. Ac­cessed March 10, 2020 at https://​oceana.​org/​marine-life/​marine-mammals/​southern-elephant-seal.

Reisinger, R., P. Bruyn, C. Tosh, W. Oost­huizen, N. Mu­fanadzo, M. Bester. 2011. Prey and sea­sonal abun­dance of killer whales at sub-Antarc­tic Mar­ion Is­land. African Jour­nal of Ma­rine Sci­ence, Vol­ume 33/ Issue 1: 99-105. Ac­cessed March 10, 2020 at https://​www.​tandfonline.​com/​doi/​abs/​10.​2989/​1814232x.​2011.​572356.

Rod­house, P., T. Arn­bom, M. Fedak, J. Yeat­man, W. Mur­ray. 1992. "Cephalo­pod Prey of the South­ern Ele­phant Seal, Mirounga leon­ina L." (On-line pdf). Ac­cessed March 03, 2020 at https://​www.​nrcresearchpress.​com/​doi/​pdf/​10.​1139/​z92-143.

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Classification

Classification

  • Kingdom Animalia animals
  • Phylum Chordata chordates
  • Subphylum Vertebrata vertebrates
  • Class Mammalia mammals
  • Order Carnivora carnivores
  • Family Phocidae seals
  • Genus Mirounga elephant seals
  • Species Mirounga leonina southern elephant seal