Scientific name:
Mirounga

Natural spread:
antarctic waters

the biggest representatives of the seals puts the sea-elephants, that with two types to the north of the 60 the sub-arctic islands. live in southern degree of latitude. they possess a specialized denture with re-educated edge-teeth and small, one-pointed-y cheek-teeth. Males gain a length of over 6,5 m and a weight up to 3600 kg. The females remain considerable under these measurements and bring it on half of the length and one quarter of the weight of the males. The most outstanding characteristic of the trunk-seals, to which also the folding-cap belongs, is it in arousal especially strongly stepping forward, trunk-nicely extended nose of the males.

Types In the individual one, we distinguish following two types: 1. Southern sea-elephant (Mirounga Leo-Nina), who occurs in the waters around South-Georgia, the Falklandinseln and the Kerguelen as well as some other islands north from the South-polar-seas today, after it in one very much farther enough spread-area was exterminated. - 2. Northern sea-elephant (Mirounga angustirostris), who only lives in the waters around Guadeloupe and the Galápagos-Inseln today.

Way of life As mainly night-active animals, sea-elephants hunt fish of herring - until codfish-size. Mindful of its clumsy movements into country, one doesn't suspect the nimble, agile movements, that they show in the water, with these colossuses. During the main-time of the year, the sea-elephants live in the open sea in troops. Twice per year, however, they start beaches traditional since generations. The first time in the southern spring, from end August until middle of September, the bulls first appear at the coasts of the antarctic islands. There the best places secure themselves the strongest animals directly at the water and expect the females, who appear end of September. Now, the bull collects a harem of 10-15 females about himself, over which it constantly must watch, after type of the ear-seals since frequently essentially they females at country nimble-reindeer with younger bulls "anbändeln."

Reproduction The females bear its approximately 1 m long boys, who suckle it for months approximately 3, only few days after the arrival. The combination-time approaches after it, and the mothers expel the boys from its immediate proximity since there is danger of life with the clumsy combination for the babies. Now, one can hear the typical groan and bellow of the bulls at the beaches everywhere.

The first "country-time" is past end of Octobers and goes the sea-elephants into the sea in order to replenish the lost food-reserves again. But already one month later appears again the animals at the same place in order to now, harmoniously side by side-lying, go through the Haarung. During this time, the sea-elephants change not only its short, smooth fur but it renews also the entire waiter-skin in characteristic manner. If this procedure is survived, the animals go again into the open sea where they remain until the next spring.

Fights of the bulls During the reproductive-time, the bulls are very aggressively opposite other males. Frequently, one sees it as they face themselves in characteristic action-manner with highly raised front-body in order to then drop lengthways themselves on the opponent. This action-manner, that it apply also opposite the human being, tires the animals however very quickly so that they fall exhausted in low-sleep very soon.

Continuance After the southern sea-elephant was protected completely, the continuances now are stable, and there is no more immediate threat. It is applicable also to the northern sea-elephant that the continuances generally recovered, that there is not any more immediate threat.