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All about the historical Hydrodamalis Gigas that went extinct by 1768

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North Pacific Ocean: The range of Hydrodamalis gigas in historic times appears to have been limited to the coastal waters of the Komandorskiye and Blizhnie Islands in the Bering Sea. Accounts of sightings from other islands in the Bering Sea, along the northwest coast of North America and the northeast coast of Asia, in the Arctic Ocean and Greenland are difficult or impossible to confirm and generally discounted.

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There are roughly 350 Right Whales left in the world - on the brink of extinction

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North Atlantic Right Whale | NOAA Fisheries

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The North Atlantic right whale is one of the world’s most endangered large whale species. Learn more about North Atlantic right whales and NOAA Fisheries’ work to protect and conserve the species.

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Great White Sharks are very social creatures and they are warm-blooded - meaning they can regulate their own body temperature

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Great white sharks are the largest predatory fish in the world, but scientists still have much to learn about these iconic predators.

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Amazon won the 'amazon' domain dispute - which angered many South American regions

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Amazon has a new means of dominating the market - one that threatens the economic interests of the people who call the original Amazon home. In May 2019, the online megastore secured the general top-level domain name ".amazon." Anyone with the internet will recognise these domain types even if they don't know the term. They're the endings to website addresses, like ".com," ".org," and ".ac.uk."

The ICANN - the organisation charged with overseeing the internet's domain names - gave exclusive rights to the US based company to administer ".amazon" domains, allowing the company to expand its branding opportunities. Businesses have been able to purchase these domain names since 2011, and Amazon's application has been pending since 2012.

Part of the reason for the delay is because Brazil and Peru argued against it. They said granting a private company exclusive rights to the domain would "prevent the use of this domain for purposes of public interest related to the protection, promotion and awareness raising on issues related to the Amazon biome".

Along with Brazil and Peru, Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Guyana, Suriname and Venezuela belong to the Amazon Cooperation Treaty Organization (ACTO). Collectively, the ACTO states believe their territorial interests entitle them to be involved in governing ".amazon" domains.

ICANN's guidance limits the right of corporations to register certain geographic names, but not others. The list they use generates absurd results. The Isle of Man receives the highest level of protection in the world, while Scotland receives significantly less. Regions like Mesopotamia and the Amazon receive no protection at all.

Initially, Amazon was unwilling to share the .amazon domains with the ACTO states, arguing that:

Because the .amazon registry will be a single entity registry and for purposes which serve Amazon's strategic business aims, the reserved names cannot be offered to Governments or other official bodies for their own use...

This meant that Brazil could not, for example, use Brazil.amazon to promote tourism in its poorer and more isolated states. Brazil and Peru successfully argued this was inappropriate to an intergovernmental body that is supposed to influence ICANN decisions. As a result, ICANN denied Amazon's application. The company appealed this decision to an independent arbitration panel. In 2017, the panel concluded that ICANN was too deferential to the governments. They ordered ICANN to reconsider the application.

Since 2017, the company and the ACTO states have attempted to negotiate an agreement over the use of the term ".amazon." When talks broke down, Amazon suggested compromises that it felt represented the interests of both parties. The company relented on its earlier opposition to sharing ".amazon" names with the ACTO states, granting nine domain names - one for the ACTO organisation and one for each state.

Amazon also promised not to use domain names that are significant for the culture and heritage of the Amazonian region. The company had previously proposed providing USD$5,000,000 worth of Amazon products and services as compensation to the states, but this offer was not included in the latest proposal.

Before last month's Board meeting, ACTO asked for the decision to be postponed so that negotiations could continue. Instead, ICANN's Board of Directors ended the negotiations and granted the company the exclusive rights to administer the '.amazon' domains in the future.

Enclosing the Amazon

This decision highlights what can happen when domain names like ".amazon" are privatised. ICANN is fulfilling a role previously carried out by the US government, but the arbitration panel's decision indicates that ICANN is no longer subjected to the oversight of any government.

The inability of states to effectively influence ICANN decisions can have a detrimental impact on human rights and environmental protection. In their resolution outlining the Amazon decision, there's no reference to the rights of indigenous peoples in the original Amazon, but these people will still be affected.

Under international human rights law, the indigenous peoples in the region should have been consulted. Exclusive use of ".amazon" will deprive them of using it for economic opportunities in their historical lands, such as eco-tourism. We raised this in a letter to ICANN before the Board's decision. The Board does not appear to have considered these issues, and a response from ICANN acknowledged receipt of the letter but didn't address the substantive concerns over the rights of indigenous peoples. Amazon, meanwhile, has not issued a press statement on the subject since the ICANN decision.

At its inception, the internet was a great equaliser. It meant large and small businesses could compete with one another on a level playing field. ICANN has been entrusted with administering the internet and protecting it. That means protecting its broader purpose in society. ICANN appears to have forgotten that part of its role. It now charges costs USD$185,000 for a top-level domain name like ".amazon". It's not surprising that a company whose 2018 profits were reportedly USD$11.2 billion - for which it paid no federal taxes - was able to purchase the domain before an indigenous community in Brazil.

The implications for the future of the internet are troubling. What was a global commons may become an exclusive field where those who have the most can acquire more. Those who have the least meanwhile lose even the right to use the name of their homeland.

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Amazon wins '.amazon' domain name, aggravating South American region and undermining digital commons

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Amazon has a new means of dominating the market - one that threatens the economic interests of the people who call the original Amazon home. In May 2019, the online megastore secured the general top-level domain name ".amazon." Anyone with the internet will recognise these domain types even if they don't know the term.

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The Clymene Dolphin's largest threats are entanglement (in fishing gear), hunting, and ocean noise

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What We Do

Conservation & Management

NOAA Fisheries is committed to protecting Clymene dolphins. Targeted management actions taken to secure protections for these dolphins include:

Overseeing marine mammal health and stranding response

Addressing ocean noise

Educating the public about Clymene dolphins and the threats they face

Learn more about our conservation efforts

Science

Our research projects have discovered new aspects of Clymene dolphin biology, behavior, and ecology and helped us better understand the challenges that all Clymene dolphins face. Our work includes:

Stock assessments

Monitoring population abundance and distribution

Learn more about our research

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Outreach & Education

This sign is often posted near boat ramps, piers, docks, marinas, and waterfront parks.

This sign is often posted near boat ramps, piers, docks, marinas, and waterfront parks.

This sign is often posted near boat ramps, piers, docks, marinas, and waterfront parks.

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Clymene dolphins are found in the deep, tropical waters of the Atlantic Ocean. They are the smallest dolphin in the genus Stenella, which also includes spinner dolphins, Atlantic spotted dolphins, pantropical spotted dolphins, and striped dolphins. Clymene dolphins are also known as "short-snouted spinner dolphins" because they often spin while jumping out of the water.

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The evolutionary dolphin fin (as well as sharks) provides stability in swimming and thermal regulation

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Why dolphins and sharks converged on the same great idea

Photo by David Clode on Unsplash

It's the sure sign of a good time: six jagged dorsal fins circling the lifeboat of huddled shipwreck survivors. Somewhere in the distance a tuba slowly alternates between F and F sharp. The dorsal fin has become one of the most recognizable cinematic elements of all time, but ... what does it do? Besides informing humans...

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Why dolphins and sharks converged on the same great idea It's the sure sign of a good time: six jagged dorsal fins circling the lifeboat of huddled shipwreck survivors. Somewhere in the distance a tuba slowly alternates between F and F sharp.

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Bambara was a civil rights activist along with being an author/writer, teacher, and later in her life became involved with script-writing before passing away from colon cancer in 1995

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Originally named Miltona Mirkin Cade at birth, Toni Cade Bambara was a civil rights activist, writer, teacher, and filmmaker. She was born in 1939 in Harlem, New York. At the age of six, she changed her name to Toni, and in 1970 she added the surname Bambara after finding it among her great-grandmother's belongings.

Bambara earned her BA in theater arts/ English at Queens College in 1959, the same year she published "Sweet Town," her first short story. She was a social investigator from 1959 to 1961, and then worked in the psychiatry department of New York City's Metropolitan Hospital. During that time she studied in Florence as well as Paris, and earned an MA degree from City College of New York in 1964. In 1965, she was hired to teach English at the City University of New York's fledgling SEEK program for economically-disadvantaged students. While there, she published short stories and became interested in film production. From 1969 to 1974 she was an associate professor of English at Livingston College.

Bambara's influence for her writings came from the streets of New York, where she experienced the teachings of Garveyites, Muslims, Pan-Africanists and Communists against the backdrop and the culture of jazz music. Along with her own work, Bambara edited a collection of short stories, poems and articles titled The Black Women (1970) and Tales and Stories for Black Folks (1971). During that time she also wrote her first screenplay, "Zora," which was produced by WGBH in Boston. A year later she published her own collection of short stories in Gorilla, My Love, edited by Toni Morrison and featuring fifteen stories on black women's relationships and self-love.

In the early 1970s, she risked travel to Communist Cuba and Viet Nam to research women, and then took a series of academic appointments at a number of universities. She published another collection of her short stories in 1977, The Sea Birds are Still Alive. In 1980, Bambara published her first novel, The Salt Eaters, which earned the American Book Award. The following year she won the Langston Hughes Society Award, another prestigious writing honor. As the decade progressed, Bambara concentrated more on script writing and television production, often with political and social messages.

Toni Cade Bambara died from colon cancer in 1995. The following year Toni Morrison posthumously published Bambara's Deep Sightings and Rescue Mission (1996).

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Originally named Miltona Mirkin Cade at birth, Toni Cade Bambara was a civil rights activist, writer, teacher, and filmmaker. She was born in 1939 in Harlem, New York. At the age of six, she changed her name to Toni, and in 1970 she added the ...

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Wells-Barnett was an African American activist for sexism, racism, and violence (focused on lynching) in the late 19th and early 20th century. She was also a mother to four children before passing away in 1931

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Ida B. Wells-Barnett was a prominent journalist, activist, and researcher, in the late 19 th and early 20 th centuries. In her lifetime, she battled sexism, racism, and violence. As a skilled writer, Wells-Barnett also used her skills as a journalist to shed light on the conditions of African Americans throughout the South.

Ida Bell Wells was born in Holly Springs, Mississippi on July 16 th, 1862. She was born into slavery during the Civil War. Once the war ended Wells-Barnett's parents became politically active in Reconstruction Era politics. Her parents instilled into her the importance of education. Wells-Barnett enrolled at Rust College but was expelled when she started a dispute with the university president. In 1878, Wells-Barnett went to visit her grandmother. While she was there Wells-Barnett was informed that a yellow fever epidemic had hit her hometown. The disease took both of Wells-Barnett's parents and her infant brother. Left to raise her brothers and sister, she took a job as a teacher so that she could keep the family together. Eventually, Wells-Barnett moved her siblings to Memphis, Tennessee. There she continued to work as an educator.

In 1884, Wells-Barnett filed a lawsuit against a train car company in Memphis for unfair treatment. She had been thrown off a first-class train, despite having a ticket. Although she won the case on the local level, the ruling was eventually overturned in federal court. After the lynching of one of her friends, Wells-Barnett turned her attention to white mob violence. She became skeptical about the reasons black men were lynched and set out to investigate several cases. She published her findings in a pamphlet and wrote several columns in local newspapers. Her expose about an 1892 lynching enraged locals, who burned her press and drove her from Memphis. After a few months, the threats became so bad she was forced to move to Chicago, Illinois.

In 1893, Wells-Barnett, joined other African American leaders in calling for the boycott of the World's Columbian Exposition. The boycotters accused the exposition committee of locking out African Americans and negatively portraying the black community. In 1895, Wells-Barnett married famed African American lawyer Ferdinand Barnett. Together, the couple had four children. Throughout her career Wells-Barnett, balanced motherhood with her activism.

Wells-Barnett traveled internationally, shedding light on lynching to foreign audiences. Abroad, she openly confronted white women in the suffrage movement who ignored lynching. Because of her stance, she was often ridiculed and ostracized by women's suffrage organizations in the United States. Nevertheless, Wells-Barnett remained active the women's rights movement. She was a founder of the National Association of Colored Women's Club which was created to address issues dealing with civil rights and women's suffrage. Although she was in Niagara Falls for the founding of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), her name is not mentioned as an official founder. Late in her career Wells-Barnett focused on urban reform in the growing city of Chicago. She died on March 25 th, 1931.

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Ida B. Wells-Barnett was a prominent journalist, activist, and researcher, in the late 19 th and early 20 th centuries. In her lifetime, she battled sexism, racism, and violence. As a skilled writer, Wells-Barnett also used her skills as a journalist to shed light on the conditions of African Americans throughout the South.

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This kind of dolphin develops spots as it ages

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Geographic Range

Stenella attenuata lives in the Atlantic, Indian, and Pacific oceans. It migrates seasonally to the Japanese coast and is the most common cetacean in the Gulf of Mexico. (Lang 1996, Nowak 1997)

Habitat

S. attenuata lives in the tropical and subtropical areas of the ocean and seas. Although some live inshore, most members of the species live offshore, where the temperature of the deeper water remains fairly constant. The majority of this species live in between the equator and the Galapagos Islands for the same reason that they tend to live offshore. The home range is hundreds of kilometers in diameter. (Nowak 1997)

Physical Description

S. attenuata is referred to as the pantropical spotted dolphin because its skin becomes spotted as the dolphin grows older. Its dorsal surface is dark gray but covered in paler spots, while its paler ventral surface is covered with dark spots. Another distinguishing feature is the spotted dolphin's bright, white snout. It also has melon, a fatty area located on its forehead. The inshore spotted dolphins tend to be larger in size than offshore dolphins. Males also typically have larger body sizes than females, yet females have longer rostra. The spotted dolphin has between 29 and 37 small, rounded teeth on either side of its upper and lower jaws. It has pectoral fins (on the sides), a dorsal fin (on the central back), and tail flukes. The blowhole, used for breathing and communication, is located on the top of the head. Because S. attenuata has a thin layer of blubber, it has small amounts of stored energy, so it eats high energy foods to make up for the low energy. (Bernard et al. 1989, Lang 1996, Misek et al. 1997, Myers 1997, Nowak 1997, Perrin et al. 1994)

Range mass

60 to 165 kg

132.16 to 363.44 lb

Reproduction

The mean age of sexual maturity for northern offshore female spotted dolphins is estimated to be 11.1 years, which is higher than the estimated age of 9.8 years for southern offshore females. On the other hand, males' average age of sexual maturity is 14.7 years. S. attenuata does not have any particular birthing season, although the number of births does rise in spring and autumn months. The time between births is between 26 and 36 months in the eastern Pacific and approximately 48 months near Japan. The gestation period lasts a little less than a year, and the lactation period can last for 1.5 years or longer. Females usually give birth to a single offspring (Bernard et al. 1989, Chivers et al. 1993, Nowak 1997)

Average number of offspring

1

AnAge

Average age at sexual or reproductive maturity (female)
Sex: female

2983 days

AnAge

Average age at sexual or reproductive maturity (male)
Sex: male

3956 days

AnAge

This lactation period is more than three times as long as other large whales. Occasionally females have been known to lactate during a new pregnancy, and some have also been known to give birth to twins, although this is rare. Mother dolphins feed near the surface so that they don't have to leave their calves. Pregnant females up to age 35 have been discovered.

pre-fertilization

pre-hatching/birth

pre-weaning/fledging

extended period of juvenile learning

Lifespan/Longevity

Behavior

The spotted dolphin is a gregarious animal, swimming in pods of several individuals to several thousand dolphins. The offshore schools tend to be larger in number than those of the inshore dolphins. At the age of two years, young Japanese S. attenuata join pods of other young animals until they achieve sexual maturity. At that time they return to their original pod. Japanese S. attenuata females also have been known to leave their pods during estrous. These two events of age and gender separation do not appear to take place within the tropical Pacific schools. The spotted dolphin often associates with other dolphin species and is commonly sighted with yellowfin tuna. It is an extremely fast animal, capable of swimming between 22 and 28 km/hr. It is an acrobatic species as well, possessing the ability to leap to great heights. It uses echolocation to locate its food. (Myers 1997, Nowak 1997)

Communication and Perception

Food Habits

The spotted dolphin finds its prey, squid and small fish, near the ocean surface. These dolphins have also been known to feed on isopods and pteropods. Lactating females eat significantly more fish than pregnant or normal spotted dolphins. The lactating female's deviation from the norm is presumably because she requires more energy than normal and pregnant dolphins. More protein and also more energy is obtained from eating fish, rather than from eating the same mass of squid. In addition, fish also contain more calcium and phosphorous, which aid in lactation. Lastly, fish have lower water content, which prevents additional water loss in the lactating female since the consumed fish are hypotonic with the sea water. (Bernard 1989, Lang 1996, Nowak 1997)

fish

mollusks

aquatic crustaceans

Economic Importance for Humans: Positive

The spotted dolphin helps yellowfin tuna fishermen to locate their target. (Nowak 1997)

Economic Importance for Humans: Negative

Regulations designed to lessen the number of dolphins killed by tuna fishermen have increased the cost and complexity of the fishery.

Conservation Status

Because S. attenuata tend to swim with yellowfin tuna, Pacific fishermen use sightings of these dolphins to help them locate their yellowfin tuna targets. The majority of S. attenuata deaths are a consequence of yellowfin tuna fishing operations. The enormous nets used to catch these tuna can unintentionally entangle dolphins as well as fish. S. attenuata is the dolphin species that has been affected to the greatest extent by the tuna fish industry. Between 1985 and 1990, almost 130,000 were killed each year because of the tuna fish catching methods. Thanks to United States government regulations, such as requiring improvements in fishing equipment, this number has decreased substantially by 100,000 deaths per year. Some spotted dolphins are killed intentionally by Japanese fishermen. Between 500 and 2000 spotted dolphins are harvested annually in order to be eaten by the Japanese. (Bernard et al. 1989, Chives et al. 1993, Nowak 1997, Perrin et al. 1994)

The current population of spotted dolphins is estimated to be 2.2 million. The government should continue to maintain strict regulations to continue the decrease in mortality among S. attenuata. (Nowak 1997)

Contributors

Deanna Riseman (author), University of Michigan-Ann Arbor.

Glossary

Atlantic Ocean

the body of water between Africa, Europe, the southern ocean (above 60 degrees south latitude), and the western hemisphere. It is the second largest ocean in the world after the Pacific Ocean.

Pacific Ocean

body of water between the southern ocean (above 60 degrees south latitude), Australia, Asia, and the western hemisphere. This is the world's largest ocean, covering about 28% of the world's surface.

References

Bernard, H.J. and A.A. Hohn. (1989). Differences in Feeding Habits Between Pregnant and Lactating Spotted Dolphins (Stenella Attenuata). Journal of Mammology. 70(1): 211-15

Chivers, S.J. and A.C. Myrick Jr. (1993). Comparison of Age at Sexual Maturity and other Reproductive Parameters for Two Stocks of Spotted Dolphin, Stenella Attenuata. Fishery Bulletin. 91: 611-18

Edwards, E.F. Allometry of Energetics Parameters in Spotted Dolphin (Stenella Attenuata) from the Eastern Tropical Pacific Ocean. Fishery Bulletin. 91: 428-39

Lang, B. Pan-Tropical Spotted Dolphins, Stenella Attenuata. Minerals Management Service Gulf of Mexico OCS Region. http://www.mms.gov/omm/gomr/homepg/regulate/environ/marmam/pan-trop.html

Myers, P. 1997. Animal Diversity Web. http://www.oit.itd.umich.edu/projects/ADW

Nowak, R.M. 1997. Walker's Mammals of the World online version. http://www.press.jhu.edu/books/walker

Perrin, W.F., and G.D. Schnell, D.J. Hough, J.W. Gilpatrick Jr., J.V. Kashiwada. (1994). Reexamination of Geographic Variation in Cranial Morphology of the Pantropical Spotted Dolphin, Stenella Attenuata, in the Eastern Pacific. Fishery Bulletin. 92: 324-46

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Stenella attenuata (pantropical spotted dolphin)

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Stenella attenuata lives in the Atlantic, Indian, and Pacific oceans. It migrates seasonally to the Japanese coast and is the most common cetacean in the Gulf of Mexico. (Lang 1996, Nowak 1997) S. attenuata lives in the tropical and subtropical areas of the ocean and seas.

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A cetacean includes all whales, dolphins, and porpoises

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The word cetacean has its origins in Latin (Cetus) referring to a large sea creature and Greek (Ketos) meaning whale or sea monster.
Having evolved around 50 million years ago, today they are separated into two distinct types - Mysticeti (baleen whales) and Odonotoceti (toothed whales).

The baleen whales are made up of most of the larger whales, such as the blue whale and humpback whale. One notable exception is the sperm whale which is a toothed whale.

The other toothed whales include all dolphins, porpoises and beaked whales. Beluga whales and narwhals also belong to this grouping.

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What is a cetacean? - Whale & Dolphin Conservation USA

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The word cetacean has its origins in Latin (Cetus) referring to a large sea creature and Greek (Ketos) meaning whale or sea monster. Having evolved around 50 million years ago, today they are separated into two distinct types - Mysticeti (baleen whales) and Odonotoceti (toothed whales).

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Alexis De Veaux, PhD., is the author of eight books, an artist, lecturer, and has worked for multiple community based organizations

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For the first time, Queer|Art|Mentorship will be accepting applications from emerging artists across the country. Are you open to working with someone remotely, or would you prefer they are based in the same city as you?
"I am open to either possibility."
What interests you about mentoring?
"I am interested in caring for and sharing artistic and life learned skills with an emerging artist."
Given your experience and interests, what kind of emerging artist do you feel best positioned to support?
"A black queer identified writer of fiction or nonfiction."
What would you feel most excited about working on with your Fellow?
"Bringing a project the Fellow is currently working on to its next stage of completion."
As a mentor, what would you like to offer an emerging artist? What would you like to receive?
"I would offer a lifetime of knowledge and experience about writing and living. I would like to receive a sense of the necessity for intergenerational black liberation."
Have you had mentors of your own? Who have they been?
"My mentors have included my paternal grandmother, Ruby Moore Hill; my maternal grandfather, James De Veaux Sr; writers June Jordan, Toni Cade Bambara, James Baldwin Essex Hemphill, Audre Lorde, Jayne Cortez, Toni Morrison; visual artists Valerie Maynard, Carole Byard."
Is there something we didn't ask that you would like prospective applicants to know?
"I am left handed; I make "book states" (visual stories from found objects); I make gardens."

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For the first time, Queer|Art|Mentorship will be accepting applications from emerging artists across the country. Are you open to working with someone remotely, or would you prefer they are based in the same city as you? "I am open to either possibility." What interests you about mentoring?

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Chapter 8: Diver Almost Swallowed by Whale

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Chapter 8: Diver Almost Swallowed by Whale

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Rainer Schimpf found himself in the mouth of a Bryde's whale while filming a sardine runoff. The whale then let him go when it realized Schimpf was not prey. Schimpf survived

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This Diver in South Africa Ended Up Inside a Whale, And Survived

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It was a chance encounter that neither man nor beast was fully prepared for. Wildlife photographer Rainer Schimpf was simply swimming along, filming a sardine run off the coast of South Africa, when suddenly, the sea began to churn.

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The leopard seal is known to eat other species of seal pups including the Weddell seal, Ross seal, southern elephant seal, and Antarctic fur seal

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When you think of seals, a moon-faced, snow white harp seal pup may come to mind.

With a reptilian-looking head, a taste for adorable penguins and a rather violent method for breaking apart their prey, leopard seals don't exactly fit this fluffy seal ideal. But are they actually as bad as some movies and documentaries would have you believe?

What do leopard seals eat?

Leopard seals are named for their spotty coats. Like their big cat namesakes, these Antarctic mammals are carnivores. They have one of the most varied diets of any seal. A large part of this is made up of tiny crustaceans called krill, but they also eat squids, octopuses, penguins and other seabirds. One leopard seal even regurgitated a sea snake.

Leopard seals are the only seal species known to actively prey on other seals, taking pups of crabeater, Weddell, Ross, southern elephant and Antarctic fur seals.

Extensive predation by leopard seals is thought to play a substantial role in preventing the growth of some fur seal populations. Experts also estimate that up to 78% of crabeater seals over the age of one have injuries or scars from leopard seal attacks.

The leopard seal's teeth reflect their varied diet. Their sharp canines and incisors are used to grab and tear large prey, whereas the molars are a trident shape and are used like a sieve to filter out water when they catch mouthfuls of smaller prey like krill.

Leopard seals are agile swimmers but less graceful on land. As true seals (in the family Phocidae) their small front flippers can't hold up their body, so on land they have to flop along on their bellies. Despite this, they are thought to spend up to 31% of their time hauled out.

Leopard seals and penguins

Leopard seals are mainly found around Antarctica and the sub-Antarctic islands. Some are seen further north, such as on the coasts of New Zealand and Australia, though these are vagrants that have ended up there by accident.

In the Antarctic, leopard seal diets seem to vary through the year. In summer they primarily feed on fish and krill, and in winter when the sea ice expands, they are mostly sustained by bountiful colonies of seals and penguins in the shallower waters.

Leopard seals have a well-documented taste for penguins and at up to 3.5 metres long and 500 kilogrammes, they outmatch any species of these aquatic birds. The seals patrol shorelines, often stationing themselves at colonies, waiting to ambush birds as they transit between land and sea. A 2009 report found that at one colony, 12-16% of the gentoo penguins were consumed by leopard seals.

These long and muscular marine predators are aided by excellent sight and smell underwater but face a couple of challenges once they have caught a meal. Leopard seals' small forelimbs and small claws aren't suited to holding their floating catches still. The seals also lack shearing teeth, which carnivores like lions and hyenas use to cut prey into swallowable pieces.

Instead, leopard seals must thrash and shake their prey to break it down. Holding one end, the seals rapidly sling their catch in an arc over their heads, smashing it on the water's surface until it breaks open. A clever solution for the seal, although one that might appear rather brutal to an outside observer.

Is sharing really caring?

Leopard seals are solitary and often aggressive to one another, particularly around food. There have, however, been rare sightings of leopard seals appearing to work together to break down prey. Cooperative feeding is more commonly seen in social predators such as killer whales and wolves.

Witnesses report pairs of leopard seals tearing king penguins between them in acts of occasional kleptoparasitism - a behaviour where an animal steals food caught by another individual.

Hunting at a penguin colony can mean lots of competing predators. In the case of the kleptoparasitic leopard seals, up to 36 individuals were seen feeding together. It may be more energy efficient for the seal to share its meal and catch another from the ample supply of prey than to defend a kill or stash it somewhere safe.

About 50% of the time in the feeding pairs, one leopard seal would tear at the prey, while the other held on, anchoring it. Since the seal doesn't need to thrash the prey about to break it up alone, it likely uses less energy - although it's impossible to say whether the seal considers this.

Human interactions with leopard seals

When humans and leopard seals come face-to-face, our interactions don't always go well. Fatalities have occurred on both sides.

On Ernest Shackleton's Antarctic expedition in the early 1900s, Major Thomas Orde-Lees was chased across the ice by a 'sea leopard', described by the Ohinemuri Gazette in 1917 as 'a blood-thirty [sic] monster'. The seal was shot by another member of the expedition party. In 1985, Scottish explorer Gareth Wood was almost dragged off the ice by a leopard seal. Wood's companions reportedly kicked the seal's head with their spiked crampons until it let go.

Like other seal species, leopard seals will chase or try to bite intruders. When they haul out near human populations, authorities tend to warn inquisitive people to keep their distance.

In 2003, researcher Kirsty Brown was dragged deep underwater by a leopard seal in Antarctica. Following her death, an investigation based on 30 years of recorded interactions found that the seals are generally more likely to attack humans at the ice edge. Humans are not typical prey for leopard seals, but our shape is probably fairly similar to that of a penguin as we waddle along on the ice.

The inquiry also found that when interacting with humans in the water, leopard seals were typically curious rather than aggressive. Photographer Paul Nicklen encountered this in 2006 - a female leopard seal brought him increasingly worn out and dead penguins, which he interprets as the animal perhaps trying to teach him to hunt.

But contact isn't always initiated by the seals. A variety of seal species have been commercially hunted for their skins, flesh and fat. In 1918, former newspaper The Colonist described how leopard seal oil was 'good quality and utilisable for the same purposes as commercial seal and whale oils.'

Leopard seals are now protected by The Antarctic Treaty, which designates the Antarctic as a 'natural reserve, devoted to peace and science'. The Convention for the Conservation of Antarctic Seals prevents leopard seals and other species from being over-exploited by humans.

A secretive species

The leopard seal's Antarctic habitat usually keeps this species far away from prying human eyes. Together with their preferred solitude, this makes them notoriously tricky to study.

Population estimates of leopard seals range from as few as 18,000 to 440,000.

We also don't know about their breeding habits in great detail. Pups are born on the ice between November and December, though in South Georgia pupping occurs a little earlier. The breeding season is thought to begin soon after pups are weaned. Leopard seals are known to be quite vocal, possibly to attract a mate or for territorial signalling. Experts think that the seals mate in water in the wild.

We don't know how much of an effect climate change is having on leopard seals either. The loss of ice used for pupping grounds, resting areas or as their mammal and bird prey's habitat would have a negative effect on this species. A decline in the supply of krill would also impact leopard seals and some of their other key prey species. Changes in leopard seal feeding behaviour and numbers could alert us to problems elsewhere in the food chain.

There are fundamental gaps in our knowledge of these incredible apex predators, making them something of an enigma. This may be part of the reason why leopard seals are occasionally reduced in some media to a supporting role as the mysterious villains.

As a predator of larger Antarctic animals such as penguins and other seals, leopard seals keep these animals' numbers in check. By maintaining balance in the ecosystem, leopard seals play an important role on our planet, regardless of any public image issues.

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When you think of seals, a moon-faced, snow white harp seal pup may come to mind. With a reptilian-looking head, a taste for adorable penguins and a rather violent method for breaking apart their prey, leopard seals don't exactly fit this fluffy seal ideal.

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The New Zealand Sea Lion is one of the rarest sea lions as well as very endangered. Only about 9,000 remain

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A Stunning Conservation Comeback

Walking through the undulating dunes, I saw a big furry creature swaddled in the couch grass. The shaggy beast looked a lot like a bear, but we were in the wrong domain for such a creature.

I was out leading a tour group in my capacity as a wildlife guide. The location was South Island, New Zealand and the animal that lay before us was the New Zealand Sea Lion, which is genetically related to bears.

A thick pelt of fur envelopes their body and the male acquires an impressive mane around his neck as he matures. Like his terrestrial cousin, the New Zealand Sea Lion is a top predator: His quarry tends to be fish, squid, octopus, crabs and the occasional penguin.

On Sea Lions, the razor-sharp claws of a bear have been sheathed inside a membranous flipper. This flipper propels them through their watery lair, as well as allowing them to capture prey. The Sea Lion also has a thick layer of blubber, which insulates it from the frigid water as it descends to deeper realms.

Much of the population lives on the subantarctic Campbell and Auckland Islands, with a tiny population living on the mainland. The species' conservation status is listed as ''nationally critical''- the highest threat status given in New Zealand. In short, the New Zealand Sea Lion is one of the most threatened Sea Lions in the world, and quite possibly the rarest.

NEW ZEALAND SEA LION HISTORY

No humans lived in New Zealand until about 1,000 years ago, when Maori tribes arrived from and settled around the country, subsisting on various plants and animals. Over time all of the Sea Lions were decimated for food and fur- first by the Maori and later by European settlers. By the 1800s, the Sea Lion was extinct in New Zealand.

In 1993, a lone female New Zealand Sea Lion was found by a farmer at Taieri Mouth, on the lower South Island. The farmer contacted the Department of Conservation, confused about the "blonde seal" he found on his property.

This female (subsequently called "Mum") had been tagged by researchers as a pup on the Auckland Islands in 1986. For reasons unknown, she'd traveled 435 miles to settle on New Zealand's Otago peninsula. She also happened to be pregnant. Females are not known to venture far from where they were born, so Mum's epic journey was all the more remarkable.

THE POPULATION REBOUNDS

Mum's solo journey became a beacon of hope for this flagging species. Males from the subantarctic islands had begun populating the Otago peninsula in the early 1980s. With the arrival of Mum and the birth of her daughter, this was the beginning of a small breeding population.

Over the next 17 years Mum produced 11 pups, many of which were female. Each pup born on the South Island is very precious, particularly to the New Zealand Sea Lion Trust and the Department of Conservation. These organizations keep a close watch on the New Zealand Sea Lion population, both on the mainland and the islands.

Every Sea Lion pup that has been born on the mainland since 1993 has been tagged and named. Mum's first pup, named Katya, went on to have 10 pups of her own. When new pups are born, every effort is made to keep them safe from potential threats, including dogs.

THE SOUTH ISLAND SEA LION EXPANSION

The South Island population has since grown to approximately 160 Sea Lions, but only a tenth or so are female. This skew in the sexes creates an interesting, sometimes lethal social dynamic.

When male/female ratios are more natural, a harem system exists: The strongest mature males (or "bulls") fight for the right to breed with a number of females. This dominant male, known as the beach master, can preside over up to 25 females. This type of harem is often seen around the Auckland and Campbell Islands, where New Zealand Sea Lions are found in greater numbers.

On the South coast beaches of the Otago peninsula and the Catlins, the low numbers of female sea lions has resulted in some confusion. Sexually charged males look- sometimes in vain- for females to corral into a harem of their own. Juvenile males look similar to females, being both lighter in color and smaller than the beach masters.

Mature males can weigh from 250-400 kgs, while mature females weigh between 100-160 kgs. As the male develops, his fur turns from a light brown/tan color to dark brown and the thick mane around his neck becomes more impressive. Females are very pale by comparison (almost the color of sand), and blend in exceedingly well with their surroundings.

An amorous male in these areas, having seen a juvenile male approaching his patch, will sometimes approach the young interloper. Their initial exchanges can range from bluff and bluster, to playful interactions, to the older male actually seducing the younger. It's not unusual along the Otago coast to see a large male surrounded by his "women," which are actually juvenile or sub-adult males!

When a bona fide female is in the area, it can create quite a stir and become a challenging encounter for her. Males sometimes run at her en masse, blocking her path back to the water to escape. She can be particularly vulnerable if she has a young pup with her. In all the excitement, some females have inadvertently been killed from too many males wanting to mate with them.

Despite these issues, it's a positive sign to see New Zealand Sea Lion numbers slowly but surely increasing. Since Mum arrived on the mainland, an unrelated female named Marea settled in the Catlins in 2006 and proceeded to breed there. Their offspring have now established small breeding populations on South Island as well as Stewart Island, a small inhabited island located to the south.

CURRENT CONSERVATION CONCERNS

In the subantarctic islands the numbers of New Zealand Sea Lions has been steadily dropping. The breeding population decreased by 50% between 2000 and 2015, and there are now only around 9,000 remaining.

The reasons for the decline are numerous. There's a large squid fishing industry off Auckland and Campbell Islands, where Sea Lion deaths have been caused by accidental bycatch in fishing nets and trawls. When a female dies, she most likely orphans a pup onshore, who will die without her. She's also likely to be pregnant with another pup.

Two other serious problems are disease and starvation. In 1998 an outbreak of an unknown disease caused the deaths of over 50% of the pups and 20% of the females in the Auckland Islands. In 2002 and 2003 the Sea Lions suffered heavy mortalities due to the bacterial infection Klebsiella pneumoniae. This caused the deaths of 32% of the pups within the first few months of life in 2002 and 21% in 2003.

Reduced prey availability is another major cause of adult and pup mortality. A significant death toll was exerted on the Campbell Island population this year, with 58% of the pups dying within the first month. Studies indicated that starvation was responsible for the deaths of 62% of the dead pups that were necropsied.

Unfortunately local fisheries target some of the same species that Sea Lions predominantly feed upon. This competition for resources is an issue, particularly with females whose feeding ranges are restricted while their pups are young.

At the current rate of Sea Lion decrease around the Auckland and Campbell Islands, there is genuine concern for the future of this beleaguered population.

HOPE FOR THE FUTURE

Ironically, mainland New Zealand may now be the greatest safe haven for this species.

Mainland Sea Lions have smaller distances to travel when foraging for prey, as well as lesser diving depths and durations than their subantarctic counterparts. In comparative studies, the mainland population was found to be heavier than the Auckland and Campbell Island animals. With less danger and more prey available, there's hope that the mainland population will continue to survive and thrive.

The irony is that many Kiwis are unaware of the New Zealand Sea Lion's existence. The species' re-population has been highly localized. The only two places where you have a reasonable chance of seeing them is on a handful of beaches around Dunedin and the Catlins. Why would people fight to save a creature they're unaware of and have no affinity for? The subantarctic population lives in an area which is primarily frequented by scientists.

The small but resurgent population of New Zealand Sea Lions is forming an uneasy comeback on the mainland. Tourists flock to see them, but locals are divided- some are fascinated, and some afraid of them.

Boisterous Sea Lions are curious and playful by nature. An enthusiastic Sea Lion can appear to be an intimidating rather than engaging playmate. Despite their massive size, they can streak along a beach at up to 25km/hour, much faster than you or I. In their natural aquatic habitat, they revel in interactions with surfers. No matter how confident one is in the ocean, having a large beast with dragon breath hurtle towards you is quite the experience!

For diehard animal lovers like me, seeing the return of New Zealand Sea Lions to the mainland as they reestablish themselves is nothing short of miraculous. Mum, Marea, the subantarctic males and their offspring are like messengers sent to remind us all of the need to protect their vulnerable relatives down South. -Suzanne Burns; photos by Shaun Templeton
Born in Ireland, Research Zoologist-turned-wildlife guide Suzanne Burns has lived in Australia, England, New Zealand and Canada. Her lifelong love of travel has allowed her to become increasingly involved in conservation efforts, working for marine NGO Our Seas Our Future on NZ and as a whale warden in British Columbia's Robson Bight Ecological Reserve. Immersed in the most incredible scenery and wildlife experiences, she consequently has a wealth of photos and stories from my time in these places that she looks forward to sharing with Green Global Travel's readers. If you enjoyed our story on the New Zealand Sea Lion, you might also like:

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New Zealand Sea Lion: A Stunning Conservation Comeback - Green Global Travel

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The New Zealand Sea Lion A Stunning Conservation Comeback Walking through the undulating dunes, I saw a big furry creature swaddled in the couch grass. The shaggy beast looked a lot like a bear, but we were in the wrong domain for such a creature.

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The hooded seal is a more aggressive kind of seal and they are not social at all. They can dive from 325 to 1,950 feet for about 10-15 minutes at a time to search for food

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What We Do

Conservation & Management

NOAA Fisheries is committed to the protection of hooded seals. Targeted management actions taken to secure protections for these seals include:

Implementing Seal Management Plans in partnership with the Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Organization.

Overseeing marine mammal health and stranding response.

Educating the public about hooded seals and the threats they face.

Learn more about our conservation efforts

Science

Our research projects have discovered new aspects of hooded seal biology, behavior, and ecology and have helped us better understand the challenges that all hooded seals face. Our work includes:

Observational studies.

Stock assessments.

Monitoring population abundance and distribution.

Learn more about our research

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Hooded seals live in the cold waters of the North Atlantic and Arctic Oceans. Adult males are known for the stretchy cavity, or hood, in their nose, which they can inflate so that it looks like a bright red balloon. They have another inflatable nasal cavi

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Smith grew up in California and graduated from Harvard University. Smith is an author, poet, and educator. She was recognized as poet laureate of the U.S. in 2017. She has won many other awards and received grants as well

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Tracy K. Smith | Academy of American Poets

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Tracy K. Smith - Tracy K. Smith is the poet laureate of the United States. She received the Academy of American Poets Fellowship in 2014 and the James Laughlin Award in 2006 for her second book, Duende. She is the Poem-a-Day Guest Editor for April 2019 and 2018.

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The National Audubon Society is an organization that protects birds and their habitats. In accordance to their work in water, they make sure that the water is clean in places where birds use the water as a resource

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Audubon's Water strategy focuses on ensuring clean and abundant water in rivers, lakes, streams, wetlands, and marshes in landscapes where this is paramount to birds' survival.

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Nyong’o is a professor at Yale University and teaches African American Studies, American Studies, and Theater Studies. He focuses on the musical and performative aspects of blackness. He also won the Errol Hill Award for the first book he ever wrote

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Tavia Nyong'o is Professor of African American Studies, American Studies, and Theater Studies at Yale University. He works in contemporary aesthetic and critical theory with a particular attention to the visual, musical, and performative dimensions of blackness, as well as to the affective and technocultural dimensions of modern regimes of race.

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The Vaquita is the most rare marine mammal on Earth. There are maybe only 10 left in the world. They are usually caught in gillnets in illegal fishing operations in the Mexican Gulf of California

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Howlett died on July 10th, 2017. He was a whale rescuer. He was rescuing North Atlantic right whale No. 4123 from entanglement when he was struck by the whales tail. He did free the whale. It was said that he was very happy when he saw he freed the whale but, shortly after that he was struck

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After an unprecedented number of whale deaths this summer, CBC News is bringing you an in-depth look at the endangered North Atlantic right whale. This week, in a series called Deep Trouble, CBC explores the perils of trying to rescue entangled right whale​s.
Joe Howlett savoured the early morning light as the Shelagh left Shippagan harbour in northeastern New Brunswick at sunrise.

It was July 10, and Howlett and the rest of the Shelagh crew were racing to save North Atlantic right whale No. 4123.

It would be Howlett's final voyage.

The volunteer whale rescuer died that day trying to save an endangered species the federal government is tasked with protecting.

DEEP TROUBLE | Right whale in peril

The details of Howlett's death - untold until now - took place in the middle of a deadly summer for a disappearing species.

By July 10, the corpses of seven North Atlantic right whales had already been found, apparent victims of ship collisions or entanglements in fishing gear.

As the death toll climbed, pressure mounted on the federal government to save the whales from a man-made calamity before it was too late.

But members of the Campobello Whale Rescue Team, co-founded by Howlett on the tiny New Brunswick island in the Bay of Fundy in 2002, are the only people with the permit - and the will - to rescue entangled right whales in the Maritimes.

For 15 years, the federal government has relied on volunteers in the Maritimes to rescue this endangered species, providing a few thousand dollars and lending them old boats. They've rescued dozens of whales.

Partway through the summer, Fisheries Minister Dominic LeBlanc pledged to "take every possible measure" to protect the whales, which now number 500 at most.

But weeks later, still mourning one of their own, members of the Campobello team are calling for more help from the federal government.

"It makes me very angry that there has been this apparent lack of interest," said Jerry Conway, a retired employee of Fisheries and Oceans and an adviser to the whale rescue team.

One last rescue

Crew members of the 14-metre Shelagh were on the water in early July to do research, but entangled whales kept changing their plans.

Just days earlier, Howlett, along with Philip Hamilton, a research scientist at the New England Aquarium's Anderson Cabot Center for Ocean Life, successfully freed a right whale with the help of a Fisheries and Oceans crew.

Elation quickly turned to frustration when news came on July 9 that yet another endangered whale was in trouble.

Hamilton, the only witness to Howlett's last rescue who is not a Fisheries and Oceans employee, shared the details exclusively with CBC News.

Freeing No. 4123

Out in the Gulf of St. Lawrence, the Shelagh was about an hour away from No. 4123, when Howlett and Hamilton switched over to a Fisheries and Oceans fast rescue craft.

As they raced toward the whale, Howlett was at the bow, ready for action.

The captain noticed Howlett was getting a lot of spray, and he asked Hamilton if Howlett might like to move back, so he could stay dry.

"I kind of knew the answer, but I poked my head out of the wheelhouse and said, 'Joe, do you want to come back?'" Hamilton said.

"He turns to me with this big smile on his face. No, he's in the elements and loving it."

After about an hour, the crew spotted No. 4123.

Hamilton designed the catalogue that keeps track of every North Atlantic right whale and knows each animal's story, from the identity of its birth mother to the distinctive calluses on its head.

After an assessment, the boat approached the animal slowly. On his first pass, Howlett was able to cut one line.

He turned around and gave the crew a big smile, Hamilton said.

"We're doing it!" Howlett said. "We're doing it!"

The whale flicked its tail, getting the back of the boat wet.

The crew let the whale settle down a bit, before Howlett leaned over to cut another line on the whale's back. He was using a long spear-like handle with a knife on the end.

As Howlett got the knife hooked under a line, the whale started to drop under the boat.

Then the captain of the boat saw Howlett flash a thumbs-up, according to Hamilton.

"I got it! I got it!" Howlett shouted.

In only 15 minutes and two masterful cuts, No. 4123 was free.

'Catastrophic' blow from whale's tail

As the whale propelled itself down into the sea, Howlett had to duck as the tail came up.

"All I saw was the dorsal side of the whale's tail flip into the bow of the boat as it was going down," Hamilton said.

The tail struck Howlett with roughly a tonne of force.

"It was catastrophic, so he probably didn't feel anything," Hamilton said.

Hamilton performed CPR for an hour and a half to try to revive his friend before the coast guard met them and took over.

But Howlett, 59, could not be revived.

Overhead, a plane was monitoring the whale, which thrashed and wriggled, shaking loose the lines Howlett had severed.

By the end of the day, the six-year-old male right whale was free of fishing gear.

Howlett could never bear to see an entangled whale, Hamilton said. He would be ecstatic to know the whale was still swimming.

"He was really happy at his very last moment. I take some comfort in that."

In the following days, news of Howlett's death was shared across the globe.

He was hailed as a hero.

Downloading responsibilities

Saving a whale's life produces a feeling of exhilaration like no other, said David Anthony, a fellow fisherman of Howlett's and a member of the Campobello Whale Rescue Team.

"If you didn't get that strong high, or that strong feeling from it, I think that you would probably not do it at all," Anthony said.

The team loves that feeling, and its members never considered saying no to a rescue.

At the same time, they believe the federal government has downloaded responsibilities onto them.

Fisheries and Oceans sets the standards and rules for protecting endangered species, including the North Atlantic right whale, under its Species at Risk Act.

Fisheries and Oceans gave the Campobello team a permit to disentangle whales, under the condition that "all reasonable alternatives" had been considered and "the best solution has been adopted."

The federal government sets the rules of engagement, but doesn't offer much financial support.

"I guess we've given them a free ride for a long time," said Moira Brown, a rescue team member and research scientist at the New England Aquarium.

The department disagrees, according to Adam Burns, the acting director general of fisheries resource management.

He cited the government's actions this summer - closing a crab fishery early in the Gulf of St. Lawrence and requiring ships to slow down - and its funding of the Campobello rescue team as examples of the focus on endangered whales.

"The government's commitment to whales is, to me, pretty clear," Burns said in an interview.

But members of the Campobello team said it's not uncommon for them to leave paying work to help save a whale.

Aging vessels

The team travels on two boats on loan from Fisheries and Oceans. One is 34 years old, with seats held together by electrical tape, and the second is 19 years old.

When the engines failed, the team raised $40,000 to replace them. Anthony installed them in his free time.

"It seems like their responsibility probably should lie at least in giving us support to the fact that we need safe equipment to do the job," Anthony said.

The team also gets $9,500 a year in federal funding, most of it going to pay insurance on the two boats.

"We're doing their work, we have their boat, yet we have to pay the insurance on their boats," Conway said.

Burns wouldn't comment on why the Campobello team must pay insurance on the boats, saying the team has a negotiated contract based on "the services they provide."

He also wouldn't say whether the government might consider giving the team more funding.

"Obviously, there's an investigation ongoing with respect to the tragic death of Mr. Howlett. So we'll have to see."

Left in limbo

Weeks after Howlett's death, the team's two rescue boats remain docked at Campobello's Head Harbour.

Transport Canada is investigating Howlett's death but wouldn't provide any details. WorkSafeNB and the Department of Fisheries and Oceans are also investigating.

Even though they're the experts, members of the team said they haven't been interviewed by investigators.

Nor have any investigators talked to Hamilton since the day of Howlett's death.

The team must now ask the permission of Fisheries and Oceans before embarking on a whale rescue mission. Right whale rescues have been suspended since Howlett's death.

Conway believes Howlett would be angry to see the rescue team locked in what its members call bureaucratic red tape.

"I feel that if he's looking down on us, he's going to be very concerned with the government agency that is doing this."

'It's cracked my heart open'

For Moira Brown, between losing her friend Howlett and the deaths of at least 14 right whales, it's been the worst summer of her life.

In her mind, the only way to save the population and honour Howlett's memory is to figure out why whales keep getting entangled. No one has found the answer yet.

To do that, Brown believes, the government must be more willing to ask fishermen for their ideas. She believes the team could help with that, if only they had the resources.

Hamilton, too, has struggled through a dark summer, dealing with Howlett's sacrifice and watching the decline of a species he loves.

"It's cracked my heart open," he said.

Like Brown, he believes the best way to honour Howlett would be to find a way to stop whales from getting entangled in the first place.

In a bittersweet moment 19 days after his friend's death, Hamilton said, he was glad to see whale No. 4123 swimming free in the Bay of Fundy.

"I would rather Joe were alive."

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Death of a whale rescuer: The untold story | CBC News

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After an unprecedented number of whale deaths this summer, CBC News is bringing you an in-depth look at the endangered North Atlantic right whale. This week, in a series called Deep Trouble, CBC explores the perils of trying to rescue entangled right whale​s.

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Stanley is an author, theorist, and professor of Gender and Women's Studies at the University of California. Stanley has a focus on racial and gender violence in the U.S. and wrote about it in his book, "Atmospheres of Violence"

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This extinct whale is known as the largest whale ever known. It is roughly 12-13 million years old and was 45-60 feet long. It inhabited the southeastern Pacific Ocean and was only found in Peru. Its teeth were over double the size of the largest Tyrannosaurus rex teeth discovered

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Note: This species was originally named Leviathan melvillei in the summer of 2010. As it turned out, the name Leviathan had already been used for a mastodon, an extinct type of elephant. Rules established by the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature prohibit this, otherwise confusing situations could develop because different species share the same name. Thus the authors renamed their new species Livyatan, which is the original Hebrew spelling ( Leviathan is the English spelling).

Age: 12-13 million years old, Miocene Epoch.

Range: The only known specimen of Livyatan was reported from Peru, indicating that it inhabited the southeastern Pacific Ocean.

Size: Based on the size of the 3 meter (approximately ten feet) long skull and on comparisons with other sperm whales, Livyatan had a body length of 13-16 meters (45-60 feet).

Anatomy: The skull and lower jaws of Livyatan are gigantic and massive. Unlike the modern sperm whale ( Physeter), Livyatan possessed massive, deeply rooted upper teeth and a short, wide snout. The modern sperm whale lacks upper teeth, and has a very long, less robust snout. Similar to the modern sperm whale, Livyatan exhibited a concave surface on the top of the skull called the 'supracranial basin,' which presumably housed a large fluid-filled sac called the 'spermaceti organ'. The teeth of Livyatan are large (14 inches long, 4-5 inches in width - nearly the size of a 2-liter bottle of soda, and more than double the size of the largest known Tyrannosaurus rex teeth), have sharp tips, and bear deep gouges from wearing against other teeth.

Locomotion: Although most of the skeleton of Livyatan is unknown, primitive sperm whales of a similar evolutionary grade, like Zygophyseter,have skeletons that are much like those of modern sperm whales. This suggests that Livyatan was fully marine and an efficient swimmer.

Sensory Abilities: The skull of Livyatan has a large depression on the top of the skull (the 'supracranial basin'), which in modern sperm whales houses the 'spermaceti organ' and the melon, two soft tissue organs which function in echolocation. This suggests that Livyatan could echolocate in a manner similar to modern sperm and pygmy sperm whales ( Physeter and Kogia).

Diet: The snout and the teeth of Livyatan indicate that it fed in a manner that is very different than the modern sperm whale, Physeter. The modern sperm whale feeds on large squid using oral suction, and its teeth are not used for chewing prey. The deep diving capabilities of Livyatan are as yet unknown, but the modern sperm whale Physeter is the deepest diving marine mammal, allowing it to pursue large squid at great depths. The only hard parts to squids are the beaks, which are composed of chitin (a hard protein structure; chitin also forms insect exoskeletons). The robust snout and massive lower and upper teeth of Livyatan are evidence that its prey were larger and tougher than squid. Additionally, the relative size of the attachment area for the temporalis - the primary jaw closing muscle - is much larger (relative to skull size) than in Physeter, and is similar to that of the killer whale ( Orcinus orca). It has been hypothesized that due to many of these features, Livyatan occupied a giant-killer whale like niche, and preyed upon baleen whales and other large marine mammals. The mouth of Livyatan is approximately six feet long and four feet wide - three times the size of the mouth of the killer whale ( Orcinus), and large enough to fit an adult human (or the entire head of a Tyrannosaurus rex).

Author: Robert Boessenecker

References Consulted: Lambert, O., Bianucci, G., Post, K., Muizon, C. de., Salas-Gismondi, R., Urbina, M., and J. Reumer. 2010. The giant bite of a new raptorial sperm whale from the Miocene epoch of Peru. Nature 466:105-108.

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Note: This species was originally named Leviathan melvillei in the summer of 2010. As it turned out, the name Leviathan had already been used for a mastodon, an extinct type of elephant. Rules established by the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature prohibit this, otherwise confusing situations could develop because different species share the same name.

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A video of an encounter with a Sperm Whale. Their mouths are very small!

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Audre Lorde giving a powerful speech when marching for rights of lesbian and gay men

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Audre Lorde Speaks! March  for Lesbian and Gay Rights Washington D.C.1979

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A short video with some explanation about this species of manatee

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This video shows the difference between the Dugong and Manatee species!

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What Is The Difference Between A West Indian Manatee And A Dugong?

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The pusa seal (Ringed seal) is an endangered seal (good videos on this webpage as well)

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We Influence Decision-making

* Our conservation officers are members of official seal protection working groups and committees. We monitor how proposals are implemented and request improvements, when necessary.
* We present protection-related demands and initiatives to decision-makers and communicate about the topic in the media.
* In the spring of 2011, our key demand was realized when a spring-time net fishing ban in the most important Saimaa ringed seal nesting areas went from voluntary to absolute through a decree.

We Produce Information

* We support research that seeks means for learning more about the seal's life and protecting it.

We Involve People

* We educate permanent and free-time residents of the Saimaa region on the seal and net fishing ban. Each year, together with local residents, we also declare a period of nesting peace for the Saimaa ringed seal.
* We have created a digital map, which people in the Saimaa region can use to see current restrictions on fishing nets and other fishing equipment that are dangerous to the Saimaa ringed seal.
* We give a diploma to everyone who voluntarily abandons net fishing on Lake Saimaa.
* We explain the importance of protecting the Saimaa ringed seal to the youngest family members, too.

We Collaborate with Companies

* Several companies fund Saimaa ringed seal research and protection by supporting our work. We have received, for instance, a hovercraft and other equipment as donations.

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Our conservation officers are members of official seal protection working groups and committees. We monitor how proposals are implemented and request improvements, when necessary. * We present protection-related demands and initiatives to decision-makers and communicate about the topic in the media.

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The lutra felina, also known as the sea cat, is the smallest marine mammal in the world