©Bert Gildart: Hoping to find some small remnant of the vast populations of elephant seals that once swam the Pacific Ocean until the first part of the 19^th Century, Dr. Townsend sailed the Pacific Ocean near the Baja Peninsula, exploring island after island.

At long last the scientist was rewarded, and in 1910 he discovered a tiny population on Guadalupe Island. He notified the Mexican government, and it posted armed guards on the island instructing them to shoot any and all trespassers.

Not surprisingly, the measure worked, and because of the restrictions one of the world’s most spectacular and fascinating mammals has returned from virtual extinction.

Channel Islands National Park also deserves credit, for without a secure place for females to give birth to their young and for males to gather in their harems the species still might have perished.

For awhile, in fact, it was nip and tuck, but today, elephant seals are a fairly common sight along the California coast. In fact, soon these gigantic mammals will be hauling ashore to further their species. In view of the fact that the island fox (see last post) has also made a dramatic recovery here, it seems appropriate to recall yet another Channel Island success story, particularly when I had such a wonderful sideline seat.

PRIMITIVE ISLAND

About 20 years ago, Smithsonian magazine flew me to a tiny landing strip on San Miguel, the largest and most distant island in the chain from the coast. A biologists accompanied me and together, we spent almost a week.

During the time I photographed the seals, and learned much about this incredible mammal.

What makes elephant seals so unique is, in part, their size. Males may weigh as much as 6,000 pounds, and it is for this reason the species was almost eliminated. Exploited for their rich source of oil, whalers almost exterminated this largest of all seals, not hard to do as they have no fear of man. As a result, with guidance from the biologist, I was able to approach them and pick out behavior patterns I wanted to photograph.

BRUTAL FIGHTS

In early January males begin establishing their territory and gathering in their harems. All males have this goal and maintaining these harems is a difficult task. If an interloper moves in, males will insert their noses into their mouths to amplify their lion-like roar. If that doesn’t work, one male will attempt to force the intruder from the beach.

Often fights break out, and when they do, they can be brutal. Males attempt to grab one another’s snouts, and usually the victim escapes only by ripping itself free. Look at the scars in the photo below and you can see the results.

About the time fights are beginning, females are giving birth to their young, which may weigh as much as 80 pounds. Mother’s milk is rich and within one month pups gain several hundred pounds. During this time, females eat little to nothing, living off stored fat.

Visiting the Channel Island during this intense period of time has been one of my most interesting memories. I camped in my tent on a bank of sand and around the clock could hear the roaring of seals. California sea lions also gather here between December and March, adding yet further interest.

You can see that my last post was also about the Channel Islands, about the restoration of the island fox. Helping to save elephant seals may be an even bigger success story, illustrating yet again the crucial role national parks play in preserving a more primitive America.

 

 

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THIS TIME TWO YEARS AGO WE WERE IN TAMPA FLORIDA:

Bay Bayou RV Resort (Tampa Florida)

This entry was posted on Thursday, December 11th, 2008 at 5:24 am and is filed under National Lands, Natural History/Conservation, Photography, View Point. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.