The leopard seals belongs to the family of true seals. This species lives in the subantarctic regions of the Southern Ocean, it can be found along the entire perimeter of the Antarctic ice. In very rare cases, a stray animal can be seen in New Zealand, Australia or off the coasts of Tierra del Fuego.
This kind of seal got its name – the leopard due to its spotted skin and a very predatory behavior.
The body length of an adult male reaches 3 meters in length, while the weight varies around 270-300 kg. The female is an order of magnitude longer and heavier than the male: the length is up to 4 meters and the weight is about 400 kg.
The body of the animal is very streamlined, this allows you to develop a speed in the water to 40 km / h.
The head is strongly flattened, which is more likely a reptile.
Movement in the water seal performs synchronous strokes of the front long limbs.
The body of the leopard seal is covered with a short coat, a dark gray color on the back and light, almost white with gray spots on the belly and on the sides.
About how the leopard seal hunt can tell the structure of their teeth: with incisors and canines they catch and tear prey to pieces, with their back molars with very sharp edges they hold and chop the food.
Marine leopard seals prefer to exist alone. Only young individuals sometimes gather in flocks.
The menu of leopards is very diverse: squid, fish, penguins, krill – everything that meets them on the way.
In sea leopards, gustatory habits have differences from each other: some prefer penguins only, and someone in the diet is dominated by young crab seals.
The leopard seals belongs to the family of true seals. This species lives in the subantarctic regions of the Southern Ocean, it can be found along the entire perimeter of the Antarctic ice. In very rare cases, a stray animal can be seen in New Zealand, Australia or off the coasts of Tierra del Fuego.
