Crab eater seals

Crabeater seals. How else would I start by saying - It is a terrible name and allow me to make this clear at the very beginning, they do not eat crabs. The name actually comes from the German word "Kreb" that translates to crustacean, which is what they do eat. Krill. Krill, are a small shrimp looking animal that is essentially the foundation of the entire food web in the Southern Ocean.

Anyhowz, back to the cute "rock-sausages" AKA seals, Crabeater seal (Lobodon carcinophagus) it is the most dominate seal in the world with population estimates being between 3-5million and they are only found around the Antarctic continent. It is quite easy to identify these cute little critters, as they have a creams/grey coat, long pointy snout and flat head. A key characteristic for Crabeater seals are the scars along their flanks (their sides), which is believed to be a result of aggressive behaviour from other crabeaters and potential predation attempts from the larger, Leopard seal.

These animals are usually always lounging around on ice floes or ice bergs and at times in quite large numbers. There can be 1 - 5 animals on a single piece of floating ice. They are considered to be more social than the other seal species found in Antarctica.

These animals are typically very timid & shy. If you go anywhere near them they tend to display nervous behaviour - lifting their head, looking around frantically and usually moving towards the water to slide in and escape to the depths.