Nutrition
Weddell seals are
carnivores. This means that they prey on other organisms
for food. Weddell seals hunt both in
the pelagic and benthic zones of the ocean. This means
that these seals will swim in both shallow and deep
areas of the ocean looking for food. Here is a
link to a website that shows a diagram and explains the
oceanic depth divisions in detail (Oceanic
divisions diagram).
Weddell seals favorite organisms to hunt for are
Antarctic silverfish, Emerald rock-cod and other
fish (Smithsonian National Zoological Park). Fish make great meals for
these seals. When diving underneath the ice,
Weddell seals will use the sun to their advantage. The
sun's rays cast shadows of fish that are swimming
towards the waters surface. Weddell seals will
swim in deeper waters searching for silhouettes of fish
near the surface to prey on (National Geographic 2014). They also will hunt for
octopuses,
squids,
crabs,
lobsters, and other small organisms located on the
ocean floor (National Geographic 2014). The Weddell seals greatest enemies are
orcas and leopard seals. By
being able to dive underneath the ice, these seals are
able to avoid their pretators. These organisms find Weddell seals
to be a delicious meal. Even though other organisms prey
on Weddell seals, they are considered to be a primary
consumer. This means that they are located near
the top
of the food chain. Here is a link to a website that
dimenstrates a food web diagram (figure 17.2 The
Antarctic pelagic food web) that the Weddell seal
is a apart of (Weddell
seal food web).
List of references used in this section:
Marine Conservation Society.
<URL:
National Geographic 2014. <URL:
Smithsonian National Zoological Park. <URL: http://nationalzoo.si.edu/scbi/AquaticEcosystems/Antarctica/Seals/
weddellsealfactsheet.cfm>. Accessed 21 April 2014.
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