COMPARISON OF THE STOMACH CONTENTS OF SOUTHERN ELEPHANT SEALS, MIROUNGA LEONINA, AT MACQUARIE AND HEARD ISLANDS

Abstract

Abstract: There are three major breeding populations of southern elephant seals centered on Macquarie Island, Kerguelen‐Heard Islands and South Georgia‐Antarctic Peninsula. The composition of the diet differs between these populations based on published data from Signy Island and data presented here from Macquarie and Heard Islands. These differences in diet appear to be linked to the location at which seals were sampled ranging from the least Antarctic (Macquarie Island) to the most Antarctic (Signy Island). The major food remains consisted of cephalopod beaks and fish eye lenses. More benthic material was found at Heard Island than at Macquarie Island. The diet at Macquarie Island differed between summer and winter and between young animals and adults. The difficulty in collecting dietary samples of southern elephant seals near their main foraging areas makes the study of the feeding ecology of this species extremely difficult in comparison with other Southern Ocean species.