|
 |
||||||||||
|
|
||||||||||
|
Leopard seal - HYDRURGA LEPTONYX
Class: Animals with Milk Glands (Mammalia)
The Name "Seal": "Seal" comes from the Old English word "seolh," for the animal.
Location: Antarctic shores, and occasionally on the coasts of Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, and South America.
Habitat: Open and coastal waters.
Description: The coat is either dark gray above and paler underneath, or light gray above and below with conspicuous dark spots. The head is relatively narrow and elongated, and the body is long and supple. The teeth are specifically adapted to holding on to prey and tearing it to pieces. The teeth have three sharp cusps. These seals grow to over 13 feet and weigh about 850 pounds, with the males slightly smaller than the females.
Behavior: This is a solitary seal, and not very common. In winter, it undertakes long migratory journeys toward the shores of various Antarctic islands. The adults molt in February. It feeds on a large variety of food, but it prefers penguins. It pursues and kills these birds under the water. The penguin's body is then carried to the surface where it is slammed against the surface of the water and shaken with such violence that it may be dismembered.
Reproduction: It is not known when the reproduction occurs, but it is presumed to be between November and January. As with most pinnipeds, breeding follows birth very closely.
Go to the Carnivora Page to learn more about the all the meat-eating animals.
Or go to the Seal Index to study other
seals.
From Address Labels to Zoo Toys... All Creatures Great and Small You'll Find It at the America Zoo Gift Shop Realistic Stuffed Animals & Animal Figurines Wildlife Decor for Your Home Animal Books, Magazines, and Educational Materials A Wide Variety of Wildlife Gifts & Apparel and Much, Much More  ↓ For Your Favorite Little Animal Lover ↓
Home Animal Research Library About AmericaZoo
|
