Ukrainian polar explorers capture underwater encounter with leopard seal
Ukrainian scientists from the “Akademik Vernadsky” station have shared a video of their underwater encounter with one of Antarctica's top predators—the leopard seal.
According to Ukrinform, the National Antarctic Scientific Center posted the video on Facebook.
The unique footage was captured by Alexander Kurakin and Maksym Martynyuk, researchers at the Institute of Marine Biology of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine (NASU), who were collecting samples underwater at the time.
The researchers piqued the leopard’s curiosity. Most likely, the animal was observing them out of curiosity.
After filming, the scientists immediately hurried to shore. And the predator escorted them all the way to land. Apparently, it wanted to make sure that these strange creatures had definitely left its territory.
Sea leopards are very territorial animals. And if they consider a certain area to be theirs, they may chase strangers away from it. For example, this has happened repeatedly with the boats of Ukrainian polar explorers.
A leopard seal is 3–4 meters long and weighs 300–400 kg. Thanks to its body shape and elongated front limbs, it swims very quickly in the water, reaching speeds of up to 40 km/h. So escaping from it is no easy task.
The leopard seal got its name from the distinctive spots on its body and its predatory nature. According to scientists, unlike its relatives, such as Weddell seals or krill-eaters, it can feed not only on krill or fish but also on penguins and other seals.
As reported by Ukrinform, a Ukrainian Antarctic expedition encountered several pairs of humpback whales resting while out at sea.
Photo: National Antarctic Scientific Center, Facebook