Asked by: Madie Veltens
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How does an elephant seal move?

23
Land Behavior
Elephant seals are solitary in the ocean, but on land they form large colonies around their breeding grounds. These heavy animals are best adapted to the sea and clumsy on land, but can move at speeds up to 5 miles per hour if threatened.


Simply so, how does a seal move?

True seals do not move very efficiently on land — they undulate along the ground, extending their head and shoulders forward and then drawing their pelvis forward, with a motion rather like that of a caterpillar. They frequently use their fore flippers to help, so their tracks are easily seen on a sandy beach.

Secondly, are Elephant Seals dangerous? "Bottom line is, he's very dangerous," said Allen. "You wouldn't want to get bitten by one. They have huge incisors, and even a warning nip can break a human bone." Northern elephant seals are found in the North Pacific, from Baja California to the Aleutian Islands.

Moreover, what do elephant seals like to do?

Southern elephant seals feed exclusively at sea. The main sources of food are fish and squid. Prey is captured both near the surface and very deep underwater. The seals have been known to eat bottom dwelling fish from the ocean's darkest depths.

How fast are elephant seals in water?

While swimming, southern elephant seals move at speeds around 5 - 10 kph (3 - 6 mph).

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Are seals friendly to humans?

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Why do seals slap themselves?

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What do seals do at night?

Sleep. Harbor seals sleep on land or in the water. In the water they sleep at the surface and often assume a posture known as bottling - their entire bodies remain submerged with just their heads exposed. This enables them to breathe when necessary.

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What is a female seal called?

Seals are known as the true seals, the earless seals or the crawling seals. A male seal is called a bull, a female is called a cow, and a baby is called a pup. A group of seals is called a colony on land, and a raft when in the water.

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How long does a seal live?

30 years

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What to do if a seal approaches you?

Always let seals make the first move – let them approach you. Sit back, wait quietly and observe. Aim to stay calm and move slowly to avoid spooking the seals and provoking an aggressive response. Be confident that seals are generally gentle creatures unless they feel threatened.

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Can elephant seals hear?

Even though no external ear flaps exist, and they have an unusually narrow auditory passage that leads to the eardrum, they hear quite well due to other modifications. The inner ear chamber is proportionately larger than those of other earless seals. In other words, elephant seals seem to have a form of echolocation.

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Why do male elephant seals have big noses?

Elephant seals aren't named for their size. Rather, the males develop noses that kind of look like elephants' trunks. They inflate their noses in order to scare other males away — to mate, they have to fight for dominance.

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Does anything eat elephant seals?

Elephant seals have no land predators but great white sharks and killer whales prey on elephant seals. Environmental events such as El Ñino may cause high mortality of pups because of high tides that wash the pups to sea before they can swim.

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Can elephant seals kill humans?

They dive to an average of 1,300 to 2,100 feet and sometimes to 3,000 feet, nearly twice as deep as any other seal species. The pressure, 90 times greater than at the surface, would kill humans.

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How long do elephant seals live for?

9 years

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Where does the elephant seal live?

Northern elephant seals are found in the North Pacific, from Baja California, Mexico to the Gulf of Alaska and Aleutian Islands. During the breeding season, they live on beaches on offshore islands and a few remote spots on the mainland.

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How heavy is an elephant seal?

Southern elephant seal: 2,200 – 4,000 kg
Northern elephant seal: 1,500 – 2,300 kg

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Do elephant seals eat sharks?

Elephant seals are top predators — of fish and squid. Sharks eat plenty of seals, but not so much along the Central Coast. Sharks take what they can get, but their feeding is focused to the north, in Tomales Bay and the Farallon Islands in the fall.

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Do elephant seals eat penguins?

Instead they rely on blubber reserves. The smallest of the Southern Ocean seals are fur seals, while the largest are elephant seals. Seals are carnivorous and, depending on species, eat fish, squid or krill. The leopard seal will also eat penguins and other seals.

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What is the biggest seal in the world?

Seal sizes
There are 18 species of true seals, according to Seals World. The largest is the southern elephant seal. Males are massive, weighing up to 8,500 lbs. (3,855.5 kilograms).

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What is the largest seal in the world?

The southern elephant seal (Mirounga leonina) is one of the two species of elephant seals. It is the largest member of the clade Pinnipedia and the order Carnivora, as well as the largest extant marine mammal that is not a cetacean.

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EveryThingWhat Staff Editor

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14th April, 2020

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