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Fur seals were most commonly encountered around the South Shetland
Islands and northern extremities of the Antarctic Peninsula, dwindling
rapidly in number further south. They are called 'eared seals' and
have a thick brown fur coat. The fur seals are small, standing about
70-100cm on their flippers with nose in the air. They aren't commonly
found much further south than the Antarctic Peninsula as the conditions
are too cold for them and they lack the thick insulating blubber
of the true seals.
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to a beach full of Fur seals at Alabatross Island, South Georgia!
(384kb) |
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Fur fight
Livingston Island
The Fur seals are as territorial with eachother as with humans.
Males will arrive before females and fight eachother to establish
territories.
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Mexican standoff
Livingston Island
When fighting, they will rush and bang into eachother chests and
then try and bite the other seal. This posturing is frequently punctuated
with barking.
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Approaching the old enemy
Whalers Bay, Deception Island
When not establishing or defending territory, the fur seals will
often pull out on land and sleep. However, if someone or another
seal comes close, they will immediately begin barking and moving
aggressively towards the intruder.
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