South Atlantic Elephant-seal
Mirounga leonina
OceanVulnerableVulnerable
- Diet
- Carnivore
- Mass
- 2,000 kg
- IUCN status
- Vulnerable (VU)
In short
The southern elephant seal is one of 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. It gets its name from its massive size and the large proboscis of the adult male, which is used to produce very loud roars, especially during the breeding season. A bull southern elephant seal is about more than twice the weight of a male northern elephant seal as large sub-adult southern elephant seals have weighed 3 tons, as well as more than twice the weight of a male Pacific walrus.
Source: Wikipedia (text under CC BY-SA licence).
Did you know?
The southern elephant seal is one of two species of elephant seals.