The coasts of the province of Chubut, Patagonia, Argentina, are the only place in the world where continental breeding settlements of Elephant Seals (Mirounga leonina) exist.
Southern Elephant Seals are the largest pinnipeds. They show marked sexual dimorphism, with males having a noticeable trunk or proboscis, a distinguishing feature that gives them their name. Males also weigh up to 5 times more than females, reaching a weight of up to four tons. Their coat varies according to their age, being black at birth and silver-grey after their first moult at about two months of age. They spend most of their existence in the water, spending brief periods on land to breed and complete their annual moult. These times are the most vulnerable and occur from late winter to early summer.
At the end of winter, the males come ashore to form their harems, remaining fasting for the entire breeding season, which lasts about three months, during which time they lose more than 12 kg of weight per day. The harems are led by a dominant male who must fight daily with the others to maintain his dominance. On the periphery of the colony, there are other Elephant seals that try to mate with the females, taking advantage of any carelessness of the dominant male, and often succeed. The females arrive a little later, between September and October, to give birth to a single calf, which was conceived in the previous season. The calves that are born in the shelter of their jealous mothers are suckled on demand for almost a month, after which they begin to become independent. It takes another two months before the little Elephant seals learn to swim and begin to forage in the ocean waters.
Their mothers become pregnant again while nursing. After weaning the young, they stay on shore for a while longer to moult. At this time, the new embryo is implanted, thus beginning the gestation of a new specimen that will culminate eleven months later. Once moulting is complete, they return to the sea to begin a new life cycle.
One of the most wonderful places to see and enjoy them is “Isla Escondida”, a continental beach located approximately 50 km south of the city of Rawson, the capital of the province of Chubut, which is also visited by tourists and local fishermen. Its name is due to the fact that it has a small island in front of it, which is hidden when the tide is high and covers it. This site is very accessible to everyone, it does not have any facilities or services for tourists, remaining almost in a wild state. Nor does it have any protected natural area status.
Living with visitors is often complex for Elephant seals. Weekends are the most complicated days, as some families go with their pets, which have free reign and free access to the colonies, annoying adults and pups alike. Added to this is the waste that they leave abandoned everywhere when they return to their homes and the excessive and unlimited traffic with ATVs, vehicles that access absolutely all sectors of the beach, circulating rapidly just a few meters from the pups and sometimes inside the colonies. But the saddest thing happened, in my case, one night, when fishermen were pulling their boats out of the water, crushing two hatchlings with their nautical trailer.
In addition to the aforementioned impact produced by visitors, there is also the addition of tons of plastic waste from the fishing industry’s boats. Boxes used to stow the catch, containers where the bisulfite that inhibits the shrimp’s melanosis processes is transported, nets, ropes, gloves, and other elements used in the process of catching the resource, fall into the sea and are dragged to the coast and deposited on the beaches.
This scenario has brought together several environmental organizations, which, coordinated by the “Forum for the Conservation of the Patagonian Sea and Areas of Influence” and with the financial support of the European Economic Community, are developing the project “Strengthening the Resilience of Argentina’s marine protected areas”, where one of the four axes to be carried out is the reduction of fishing plastics accumulated on the beaches of Chubut.
The objective of this line of action is not only to address the cleaning and recovery of the coasts but also to carry out in-depth work aimed at improving the production processes carried out on fishing vessels, in order to avoid the loss or dumping of plastic material into the sea. These actions can only be carried out with the support of workers, employers, and public administrators of the resource and the environment.
In addition, several NGOs are also working together with provincial institutions to resolve the coexistence of tourists and fishermen in the area where the colonies are located, aiming at the creation of a new coastal protected area that functions seasonally and has periods of inaccessibility during the reproductive season.
The ecosystem value of these colonies along the coast of Chubut is enormous and their care should be a priority for everyone. That is why this article shows images that tell the day-to-day life of the Elephant seals during the months they stay on land and the state of the beaches where they moult and reproduce, trying to raise awareness in the whole community so that they become aware of the tremendous ecological impact that every action we take has on them. As a nature photographer, I have the responsibility to show the beauty and fragility of ecosystems and their populations, and the importance of empathy and protection of all forms of life, calling to reflect on our behavior.
A friendly coexistence with the rest of the species that surround us, based on respect and love, is possible and necessary. As a society, we must make an urgent paradigm shift that recognizes that all living beings have the right to live in a healthy environment, the same one we conceive for ourselves. Destroying nature destroys us as a society. Change is possible and depends on the commitment of each one of us.
The images are devastating, but we believe that they show a reality that we can all reverse in the short term by joining forces, assuming responsibilities, and understanding that the world is one and that the only way to continue living in it is by developing our recreational and productive activities in harmony with the rest of the living beings.
