Mortified - Elephant Seal, California
by KJ Swan
Title
Mortified - Elephant Seal, California
Artist
KJ Swan
Medium
Photograph
Description
18,000 Northern Elephant Seals (Mirounga angustirostris) crowd the six miles of California shoreline during the year. They come to the Piedras Blancas Rookery to molt, breed, birth and rest.
Sub-adult males practice their gladiator fighting skills for weeks before the 5,000 lb behemoth-sized mature bulls arrive. These boys will have to grow a lot bigger before they offer serious competition to gain the affection of the females. I was fortunate to capture their comical expressions as they mock battled.
The Piedras Blancas Rookery is easily accessible, free, and open to the public every day of the year. The rookery is located about seven miles north of San Simeon off Highway 1 on the central coast of California.
Uploaded
February 27th, 2020
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