Beneath the Antarctic sea-ice: Fine-scale analysis of Weddell seal (Leptonychotes weddellii) behaviour and predator-prey interactions, using micro-sonar data in Terre Adélie

In this study, we tried to assess:i) whether and how female Weddell seals
feed (frequency, depth, duration) during lactation,ii) what is their
utilization of a limited foraging area (benthic or pelagic dives) as they
are spatially constrained by the presence of their pup, andiii) how can we
characterize their foraging dives and the approach/catching phases using
new tools providing a more detailed description of their behaviour.Sonar
tags were deployed on three breeding female Weddell seals in Terre Adélie
(East Antarctica) in November 2019, to study animals’ movements and dives
at high resolution (3D acceleration, magnetometry, time and depth and GPS
location), as well as information on prey and predator-prey interactions
using acoustic data.