Abstract
PART of the biological research of the Australian National Antarctic Research Expedition at Heard Island during 1951 was aimed at solving the unknown factors about the leopard seal, Hydrurga leoptonyx (De Blainville). The rate of fœtal growth for the complete gestation period was investigated and specimens were obtained from February onwards. No newly born pup had previously been seen, because the pregnant females migrate during September–October to the southern pack-ice where the pup is born. To overcome this difficulty, the men at Heard Island constructed a large mobile cage and drove a pregnant female leopard seal into it on September 12, 1951. Every three or four days the cage was dragged into the sea at low tide and left for the rest of the day. The seal would not feed during captivity, but it was noticed that she drank large quantities of sea water on being placed in the ocean.
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