The life of a Southern Elephant Seal molting at Elephant Point, Antarctica
December 28th, 2017 ~ we landed on Elephant Point in the South Shetland Islands, which was covered in molting juvenile male southern elephant seals. It takes roughly a month or so for these huge marine mammals to regenerate their skin & fur, which they typically remain on shore throughout this time period. At times these animals will lie around on one another, which is known as a wallow, to conserve body warmth.
Its a scene of farting, belching, growling and slight continuous disagreements that cracks me up - except for the smell... it does stain your soul a little bit & your clothes... especially your clothes.
Besides the smell & somewhat soap opera scene, these animals are somewhat sensitive and curious to their surrounding environment. The sudden opening of their eyes and along with their continuous eye contact is intimidating and an incredible moment.
Wow beautiful ..
Wonderful creatures .. well done for this information
Thank you for sharing with us these beautiful pictures
Shetland is a really beautiful Island, I lived in Lerwick and worked at the Salmon factory for 6 months. Seals would wait near by for leftovers
This post has been upvoted and resteemed. I started following you to see more of your work!
So cool that you got to spend time with them up close and personal!
Nice documentary.. I think I love the sensitive part.. Wish more could be attributed to humans
Wow simply amazing that you were able to experience this and share it with us. The photos are beautiful and they seem very comfortable in the presence of humans. You can see a level of curiosity in their eyes and trust, which unfortunately makes them easy targets for poachers. It's images such as yours that make the preservation of our environment very important so future generations can see our nonhuman friends in their raw beautiful state and enjoy all that nature has to offer.
Its really true
world is a book, and those who do not travel read only a page.
This animal are so humble .And specially their eyes are superb.
You got a 33.33% upvote from @postdoctor courtesy of @misrori!
These animals are beast. I can't stand the sight of such monsters. Thanks for sharing your experience
You were there on my birthday! Love the pics. Following. :)