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| Mom and pup, Hutton snow cliffs in the background. See how big and fat mom is? See how small and skinny the pup is? Stay tuned, and in, well, about 35 days, things will be astonishingly different. Weddell seal images obtained under NMFS Permit No. 17236 |
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| Anyone for a caption contest? What is he thinking right now? |
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| Lunch in Antarctica. We are hiding behind our snowmachines from the finger and nose numbing wind. Sometimes the wind blasts with no flying snow or ice particles, and other days, with the same speed of wind...a no-vis, full-out, condition one blizzard |
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| Back in camp, reviewing aerial maps and noting major cracks to solidify in everyone's brains where the dangers are. |
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| Cracks on a Map. Artwork by B-009. (for sale: $100 each...I'm joking of course...probably have to make that clear for NSF) |
♥ na-ruk-maaaaak! (very cute) ... what is the average weight of a newborn pup? Caption centest: "Hello Team, HUGE thanks for treating me politely and respecting my territory. You guys are soooooo beautiful humans ... Bleeeh!"
ReplyDeleteHey Rose, thanks for the comment! My informed guess (but maybe not completely accurate) is about 70 lbs...pretty hefty at birth already!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Jesse. The result of momma's healthy eating during pregnancy, extremely giant size pup! Forgot to ask about (newborn) death rate in this season, thanks for the answer.
ReplyDeleteDeath rate is very low...I don't have a precise figure, but the pups have a very high chance of survival from birth to 35 days (at least), which is when the moms leave them. Most of the mortalities occur during their first few years of life out in the open ocean.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the good questions!
"I am verrry sleepy...once you guys leave, I might wriggle over to Ma for a snack and snooze...."
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