Difference between revisions of "Template:Westarctica.wiki:Today's featured article"

Latest revision as of 13:37, 19 March 2026

The crabeater seal is a true seal with a circumpolar distribution around the coast of Antarctica. They are found primarily on the free-floating pack ice that extends seasonally out from the Antarctic coast, which they use as a platform for resting, mating, social aggregation and accessing their prey. They are by far the most abundant seal species in the world. While population estimates are uncertain, there are at least 7 million and possibly as many as 75 million individuals. This success of this species is due to its specialized predation on the abundant Antarctic krill of the Southern Ocean, for which it has uniquely adapted, sieve-like tooth structure.

Despite its name, crabeater seals do not eat crabs. As well as being an important krill predator, the crabeater seal is an important component of the diet of leopard seals, which consume about 80% of all crabeater pups.

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-[[File:Antarctic Sound-2016-Iceberg 02.jpg|300px|left]]
+[[File:Crabeater Pléneau Bay.jpg|250px|left]]
-An '''[[iceberg]]''' is a large piece of freshwater [[ice]] that has broken off a [[glacier]] or an [[Ice-shelf|ice shelf]] and is floating freely in open water. It may subsequently become frozen into [[pack ice]] (one form of sea ice). As it drifts into shallower waters, it may come into contact with the seabed, a process referred to as seabed gouging by ice. About 90% of an iceberg is below the surface of the water.
+The '''[[crabeater seal]]''' is a true seal with a circumpolar distribution around the coast of [[Antarctica]]. They are found primarily on the free-floating [[pack ice]] that extends seasonally out from the Antarctic coast, which they use as a platform for resting, mating, social aggregation and accessing their prey. They are by far the most abundant seal species in the world. While population estimates are uncertain, there are at least 7 million and possibly as many as 75 million individuals. This success of this species is due to its specialized predation on the abundant [[Antarctic krill]] of the [[Southern Ocean]], for which it has uniquely adapted, sieve-like tooth structure.
-Because the density of pure [[ice]] is about 920 kg/m3, and that of seawater about 1025 kg/m3, typically about one-tenth of the volume of an iceberg is above water (which follows from Archimedes's Principle of buoyancy). The shape of the underwater portion can be difficult to judge by looking at the portion above the surface. This has led to the expression "tip of the iceberg", for a problem or difficulty that is only a small manifestation of a larger problem.
+Despite its name, crabeater seals do not eat crabs. As well as being an important [[krill]] predator, the crabeater seal is an important component of the diet of [[leopard seal|leopard seals]], which consume about 80% of all crabeater pups.
-Icebergs are monitored worldwide by the U.S. National Ice Center (NIC), established in 1995, which produces analyses and forecasts of Arctic, [[Antarctic]], Great Lakes and Chesapeake Bay ice conditions. More than 95% of the data used in its sea ice analyses are derived from the remote sensors on polar-orbiting satellites that survey these remote regions of the Earth.
+'''([[crabeater seal|Full Article...]])'''
-'''([[Iceberg|Full Article...]])'''