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    Year 1 Marine Final Project

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    The leopard seal is an apex predator found around the pack ice edges of Antarctica. It inhabits the pack ice and fast ice edges, living a solitary lifestyle. As the top predator in its environment, it preys on other marine animals and birds. Little is known about leopard seal behavior and social structures due to their solitary nature, but they are an important part of the Antarctic ecosystem.

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    Year 1 Marine Final Project

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    50 views11 pages
    The leopard seal is an apex predator found around the pack ice edges of Antarctica. It inhabits the pack ice and fast ice edges, living a solitary lifestyle. As the top predator in its environment, it preys on other marine animals and birds. Little is known about leopard seal behavior and social structures due to their solitary nature, but they are an important part of the Antarctic ecosystem.

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    year 1 marine final project

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    The leopard seal is an apex predator found around the pack ice edges of Antarctica. It inhabits the pack ice and fast ice edges, living a solitary lifestyle. As the top predator in its environment, it preys on other marine animals and birds. Little is known about leopard seal behavior and social structures due to their solitary nature, but they are an important part of the Antarctic ecosystem.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as pdf or txt
    50 views11 pages

    Year 1 Marine Final Project

    Uploaded by

    api-326894086
    The leopard seal is an apex predator found around the pack ice edges of Antarctica. It inhabits the pack ice and fast ice edges, living a solitary lifestyle. As the top predator in its environment, it preys on other marine animals and birds. Little is known about leopard seal behavior and social structures due to their solitary nature, but they are an important part of the Antarctic ecosystem.

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    © All Rights Reserved
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    of 11

    Leopard Seal

    by Hailey Katz

    Marine Biology P1
    IDENTIFICATION OF ORGANISM

    Kingdom-​ Animalia
    Phylum-​ Chordata
    Class-​ Mammalia
    Order-​ ​Pinnipedia
    Family-​ Phocidae
    Genus-​ ​Hydrurga
    Species-​ ​leptonyx
    Common name-​ leopard seal
    Scientific name-​ ​Hydrurga leptonyx
    ENVIRONMENT AND HABITAT

    Habitat-​ ​Leopard seals inhabit the pack ice and fast ice
    edges around Antarctica. We do not know a lot about their
    habits because, the leopard seal is a loner and it is rare to
    see mothers and pups.

    Niche-​ ​apex predator

    Location-​ ​around the pack ice edges of the Antarctic


    continent
    DICHOTOMOUS KEY

    Sea Lion
    Common name-​ leopard seal
    Scientific name-​ ​Hydrurga leptonyx

    Anchovies
    Common name-​ European anchovy
    Scientific name-​ ​Engraulidae

    Herring Salmon
    Common name-​ ​Salmon
    Scientific Name-​ Clupea harengus
    DICHOTOMOUS KEY CONT.

    Sardines
    Common name-​ Madeiran sardinella
    Scientific Name-​ Sardina pilchardus

    Squid
    Common name-​ ​Longfin Inshore Squid
    Scientific Name-​ Teuthida

    Octopus
    Common name-​ ​Common Octopus
    Scientific Name-​ Octopoda
    FOOD WEB
    GENETICS

    Reproduction- ​In zoological environments, successful


    mating has been observed in males as young as two
    years. In the wild, social factors greatly influence a male's
    breeding success. Males may not successfully reproduce
    until about nine years of age, when they attain full size and
    are able to compete for females. A male with an
    established territory breeds with an average of 16 females
    in one season. Female California sea lions come into
    estrus ("heat") about three to four weeks after giving birth.
    Studies show that mating generally takes place about 20
    to 30 days after giving birth.
    Mutations-​Based on molecular evidence scientists have
    built a case for classifying the Galápagos sea lion, the
    Californian sea lion and the Japanese sea lion as true
    species. As morphological versions of these species do
    not necessarily fully reflect the serious mutations on the
    molecular level, the study can be considered as a test
    case for deriving species status from molecular evidence.
    We further use the results to discuss the role of genetics in
    conservation policy for an organism that already is under
    the general protection of the habitat it lives in. A common
    mutation is bigger hands and feet, too many whiskers, and
    too many or too little teeth.
    ANATOMY & PHYSIOLOGY

    Flippers-​​The Sea Lion has long flippers in the front and then shorter ones of the back.
    The flippers are extremely powerful. This is how a Sea Lion is able to move around on
    land as well as swim in the water. If you get the opportunity, take a close look at the
    flippers of a Sea Lion. You will find that the back flippers have five digits on them and
    the front flippers don’t have claws on them. Their flippers are very strong and able to
    help them move their body weight while on land. Depending on the species and their
    age, this can be from several hundred pounds to one ton. You will notice that Sea Lions
    have a very small head that often seems out of proportion for their larger bodies. Yet
    when they are moving in the water it all seems to be perfect.
    Fur-​​The amount of blubber that a Sea Lion will have depends on where they reside.
    The blubber is thick and it helps to keep them warm. Therefore those that live in colder
    regions will have more of it than those that reside in tropical areas. The general
    anatomy of Seal Lions is the same but you will notice some differences based upon the
    location of them. The coloring of Sea Lions various from dark brown to a dark gray. The
    young are brown in color with the females being much lighter than the males. When
    they are about six months old that brown color starts to turn into a shade of gray. Some
    of them are so dark that they may even appear to be black.
    Whiskers-​​You will notice that Sea Lions features large groups of whiskers on their
    faces. They definitely help to give them a cute appearance! Yet these whiskers also
    have a huge impact on their ability to get around in the water and to find prey. Each
    whisker has its own nerve endings and it is attached to the lip of the Sea Lion. A
    common mutation of the sea lion is too many or too little whiskers. They are very long
    and sensitive.
    EVOLUTION
    Adaptions- ​The story behind Sea Lion evolution is one that has many variations to
    it. What it really comes down to is who is telling the story. Scientific research has some
    of the answers but not enough to really to give us good answers. It isn’t that people
    don’t want to tell you the truth. Rather it is just that their viewpoint on the evidence is
    different. Some are focused on the evidence that is there while others focus on what
    isn’t there. Either way it leads to some very interesting theories. There is evidence to
    suggest that they were part of earlier times, maybe 23 million years ago. However, they
    didn’t undergo the vast evolution that many other mammals did. It is believed that they
    may have been only land animals though. Perhaps they had to evolve to get the
    webbed feet and the flippers in order to survive in the water. They still get around well
    on land. It is believed by many that their evolution to the water was due to a lack of food
    on land. Others believe that the evolution may have been triggered by changes in the
    environmental temperatures. Since it was too hot on land but cooler in the water they
    spent more and more time there. This is why they evolved in ways that allowed them to
    do well in the water. At the same time though they never lost their love for the sun and
    that is why they continue to bask in it frequently today.

    Sea Lion future- ​The future is unsure for many species of Sea Lions. Years of
    them being destroyed by humans has really taken a toll on them. Environmental
    concerns continue to cause problems for them in their natural habitats as well. The fact
    that humans are also taking control over the waters where they once lived in peace is a
    huge concern. Even with conservation efforts in place there is still a great deal of work
    to be done if these animals are going to survive. People around the world need to join
    together to stop sea lions from going extinct.
    THE END :)

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