Marine mammals
Leopard seal
Hydrurga leptonyx
Moderate danger🌊 0–300 m📏 up to 350 cmIUCN status: Least concern
Antarctica's top predator after the orca, recognisable by its reptilian head and immense jaw, able to hunt both penguins and other seals.
🗺️ Geographic range
Antarctic and subantarctic waters, around the pack ice.
📊 Population
Global population estimated by the IUCN at between 220,000 and 440,000 individuals, considered stable in Antarctica.
Habitat
- Southern Ocean · Sea Ice · Epipelagic zone · Permanent
Behaviour
- Diet
- Penguins, other seals (including young crabeater seal pups), fish and krill.
- Hunting
- Lies in wait near the edge of the ice and attacks penguins as they enter the water.
- Reproduction
- Gestation of about 11 months, giving birth on the pack ice.
Physiology
- Anatomy
- An elongated head and powerful jaw, a body that is massive at the front and tapers toward the rear.
- Adaptations
- Rear teeth able to filter krill like a sieve, in addition to hunting large prey.
🔗 Web of marine life
Predators
⚡ Its extraordinary abilities
- Can both filter krill and hunt large prey such as a penguin or a young seal
- One of the few seals known to actively prey on other seals
If you cross paths with this animal…
Risk: Moderate: a few very rare documented incidents involving divers or researchers.
Behaviour: Curious but unpredictable up close, can be territorial.
Advice: Keep your distance while kayaking or diving in Antarctic waters.
💡 Did you know?
- Can swallow a whole penguin after skinning it at the surface by violently shaking it.
- Its reptilian head and permanent grin give it a look unique among seals.