Facts
- Carnivore (prey includes squid, octopus, and fish in very deep water)
- Habitat is open ocean
- Average dives are at a depth of 2,000 feet for 20 minutes
- Longest recorded dive by an adult female lasted 2 hours
- Deepest recorded depth by an adult male was 5,141 ft.
- Adult males on average weigh 4,400 lbs., 14 ft. long
- Adult females on average weigh 1,300 lbs., 10 ft. long
- Males develop a large, inflatable nose that can be up to one foot long
- Mainly ocean-dwelling animals, only hauling-out to breed and molt
- Undergo a "catastrophic molt" once a year; they lose all hair and their top layer of skin
- During their molt, they have to stay on the beach and don't eat for up to two weeks
- Coat color is light brown before molt, dark brown right after molt
- Nearest rookery in Southern California is on the Channel Islands
- One pup is born to females in late December or early January
- Males establish territories for breeding in December, females arrive shortly after
People and Northern Elephant Seals
- Elephant Seals were hunted almost to extinction by humans for their blubber in the 1880s; only a few dozen survived
- The population is now over 150,000 due in part to the Marine Mammal Protection Act
- Northern elephant seal skin disease most often affects elephant seals during their annual molt; the lesions from the disease can make them susceptible to bacterial and parasitic infections. The exact cause of the skin disease is unknown, but it is suspected that high levels of toxins (from chemical run-offs like PCBs) in their blubber may be the cause
How to Coexist
- Law mandates that people stay 100 feet away from a northern elephant seal (whether on the beach or in the water).
- If you find a northern elephant seal on the beach, do not try to pour water on it or return it to the ocean.
- If a northern elephant seal appears sick or injured, contact CWC's Marine Mammal Rescue team to evaluate the health of the animal.
