A helo flight to Marble Point (to tag pups from mom's that were previously tagged and retag any adults that needed it), brought us along the edge of the sea ice, where some pack ice has been blown in. I have never seen this before, typically (the past two seasons being typical for me), it is just vast open ocean. Pack ice tends to bring more critters, as some, like the leopard seal, crabbeater seal, and Ross's seal, are much more tightly associated with pack ice. Here are a few shots of the pack ice:
I am trying to imagine the sounds one would hear in this environment.
ReplyDeleteIn checking out Ross' seal info, it seems that a sighting would be uncommon. Have you seen any?
ReplyDeleteNever seen one, but would absolutely love to. They are RARE around here, because there is no pack ice during this time of year. There's really not much known about them as they are the least abundant seal in Antarctica. I've only ever seen a crabbeater and a weddell seal.
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