Jackson the elephant seal tracked travelling 29,000 km

Flora Graham, deputy editor, newscientist.com

(Image: Wildlife Conservation Society)

He may look like a liquid-eyed layabout when lazing on the beach, but when Jackson the elephant seal gets moving, he can really cover some ground.

Jackson was tracked by the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) travelling almost 29,000 kilometres - the equivalent of a round trip from New York to Sydney, Australia - during its study of elephant seal migratory routes.

He was was tagged on the beach in Admiralty sound in Tierra del Fuego, Chile. He went on to roam over a 1600-kilometre radius of his home turf while foraging for fish and squid.

The WCS says that mapping Jackson's travels will help it monitor the distribution of prey species and ensure fisheries are managed sustainably. Previously, elephant seals have been deployed to monitor Antarctic seas.

Source: http://feeds.newscientist.com/c/749/f/10897/s/1af39f7f/l/0L0Snewscientist0N0Cblogs0Cshortsharpscience0C20A110C120Cjackson0Ethe0Eelephant0Eseal0Etrac0Bhtml0DDCMP0FOTC0Erss0Gnsref0Fonline0Enews/story01.htm

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