The Northern Elephant Seal May Be Strange And Funny-looking, But Their Society I

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Term Paper Title	The Northern Elephant Seal May Be Strange And Funny-looking, But Their Society I
# of Words	1088
# of Pages (250 words per page double spaced)	4.35

The Northern Elephant Seal may be strange and funny-looking, but their society is  amazing.  In the past few decades, efforts have been made to combat their dwindling numbers, while leaving them in their natural habitat, on the California coast.  In order to learn how to foster their population, scientists have studied their way of life, and their population.

     What is particularly characteristic about elephant seals is the difference between their genders; they are significantly sexually dimorphic practically from birth.  Females look very typical for seals, are lighter in colour and are dramatically smaller than males.  Males have an extended proboscis that looks like a trunk, for which the elephant seals are named.  (King, 121) An adult male weighs, on average, about 3 metric tons (adult females weigh about 900kg).  The blubber helps maintain bouancy, protects vital areas from being wounded in a fight, provides for storage of energy and for temperature regulation.  This huge size, additionally, gives elephant seals their name.
     Detrimental impacts to the elephant seal population come from different sources.  The largest detrimental effect against the population started to take effect in 1818.  Scientists believe that the population used to extend from Point Reyes near San Francisco, to Magdalena Bay in Baja California.  (Fuller, 20-1) The fur trade was in full swing at the time, but then it became more profitable to hunt for oil and tallow.  Because of their size, and their vulnerability while on land, elephant seals were a prime target.  Hunting continued until 1860 when whaling became a popular source of blubber, and when the Northern Elephant Seal became hard to find.  In 1880, it was estimated that there were less then 400 seals left, when one herd was finally spotted on the coast of Baja California.  That herd was immediately killed, with a few seals being taken as scientific specimens.
     There are actually two species of elephant seal, the Northern (Mirounga angustirostris,) and the Southern (Mirounga leonina.)  The difference of the Northern ones was not actually discovered until 1960, when they were practically extinct.  The differences lie in the shape of the head and skull, and in their migration.  The Southern Elephant Seal is circumpolar around Antarctica, the Northern Elephant Seal lives off the California coast.  They do not breed together.
     Breeding is very important to the conservation and management of the Northern Elephant Seal populati...

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