Quick answer
Key facts about northern elephant seal — size, diet, habitat, and conservation in one place.
Record dives
Elephant seals collapse lungs and slow heart rate to hunt at depths exceeding 1,500 metres — among the deepest-diving mammals. Most of life is spent at sea, visiting land only to moult and breed.
Breeding battles
Dominant bulls control harems of dozens of females, fasting for months on beaches while fighting rivals. Proboscis inflation amplifies roaring displays.
Recovery miracle
Hunted to fewer than 100 animals by 1900, protection allowed recovery to over 200,000. Año Nuevo and Piedras Blancas in California host spectacular breeding colonies.
Marine migration
Post-breeding, seals travel thousands of kilometres to Aleutian foraging grounds. Satellite tags reveal two annual trans-Pacific migrations per year.