Weddell seals are very hardy,
resourceful and quite remarkably behaviourally adapted for life
in the Antarctic pack and fast-ice as these two pictures show.
In the top picture, the seal has found a breathing hole through
pieces of only partially consolidated pack-ice where there is a
non-frozen portion that is nonetheless filled with slush. From
below such a region will let considerably more light through
than the thick pack-ice pieces and stand out like a beacon to a
seal swimming by, even if it is solid, it will be thin and
probably thin enough for the seal to break through. Weddell
seals have no land-based predators and so there is no danger to
them of coming up to such breathing holes, just the odd surprise
if there's a wandering scientist nearby to capture the moment on
camera.
The lower
picture is of a Weddell seal that has made a hole in apparently
unbroken, though quite thin fast-ice and hauled out for a rest. We
came across this seal while out several miles from the shore on
recently formed and very hard and strong, but disconcertingly thin
ice. In fact we didn't realise how thin the ice was until we came
across this seal and the hole it had made. It was entirely
unperturbed by a group of 5 people manhauling a heavily laden sledge
with camping gear as we went off on our holidays and treated us as
if we weren't really there at all. Seals probably live a fairly
surreal life anyhow.
Photo; © Paul Ward - Pentax equipment,
100mm
lens, 35mm film, K64.
This picture may not be copied or used in any manner without
prior written permission.