The Animals Of Antarctica

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A%20recent%20study%20found%20that%20climate%20change%20can%20affect%20fur%20seal%20pups%20in%20their%20first%20few%20months%20of%20life.%20Wetter%20and%20windier%20conditions%20are%20predicted%20for%20Antarctica%20in%20the%20coming%20years.%20Young%20fur%20seals%20will%20expend%20more%20energy%20keeping%20warm%20and%2C%20thus%2C%20less%20energy%20growing%20and%20developing.%20%28Photo%20Credit%3A%20Jordan%20Spielman%29

A%20baby%20fur%20seal%20gets%20most%20of%20its%20energy%20from%20its%20mother%26%238217%3Bs%20milk.%20Less%20availability%20of%20prey%2C%20due%20to%20a%20worsening%20climate%2C%20may%20lead%20them%20to%20conserve%20that%20energy%20and%20continue%20to%20rely%20on%20the%20mother.%20The%20baby%20fur%20seal%20will%20then%20have%20trouble%20sustaining%20itself%20without%20that%20source%20of%20nutrition.%20%28Photo%20Credit%3A%20Jordan%20Spielman%29

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This%20Humpback%20Whale%20is%20playing%20with%20the%20ship%2C%20surfacing%20on%20one%20side%20before%20swimming%20underneath%20to%20the%20other%20side.%20These%20whales%20can%20grow%20up%20to%20about%2052%20feet%20long%20and%20weigh%20up%20to%20almost%2080%2C000%20pounds.%20They%26%238217%3Bre%20found%20in%20oceans%20all%20over%20the%20world%2C%20including%20the%20Southern%20Ocean%20near%20Antarctica.%20%28Photo%20Credit%3A%20Jordan%20Spielman%29

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The%20Humpback%20Whale%20was%20on%20the%20brink%20of%20extinction%20in%20the%20mid-1960s%2C%20with%20a%20population%20of%20about%205%2C000.%20The%20formation%20of%20the%20International%20Whaling%20Commission%20and%20stricter%20hunting%20laws%20have%20allowed%20population%20numbers%20to%20rise%20significantly.%20Current%20worldwide%20population%20is%20now%20estimated%20at%2080%2C000.%20%28Photo%20Credit%3A%20Jordan%20Spielman%29

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A%20Gentoo%20Penguin%20can%20be%20identified%20by%20the%20orange%20beak%20and%20wide%20stripe%20crossing%20its%20head.%20It%20is%20the%20third%20largest%20of%20the%20penguins%2C%20growing%20to%20about%203%20feet%20and%2020%20pounds%2C%20but%20also%20the%20fastest%20swimmer.%20%28Photo%20Credit%3A%20Jordan%20Spielman%29

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These%203%20Gentoo%20Penguins%20are%20walking%20near%20Stromness%2C%20the%20South%20Georgia%20Island%20whaling%20station.%20Major%20populations%20can%20be%20found%20here%20and%20on%20the%20Antarctic%20Peninsula.%20The%20worldwide%20population%20is%20estimated%20at%20300%2C000%20breeding%20pairs%2C%20placing%20it%20on%20the%20Near%20Threatened%20list.%20%28Photo%20Credit%3A%20Jordan%20Spielman%29

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In%20more%20recent%20years%2C%20the%20elephant%20seal%20population%20has%20once%20again%20started%20declining.%20Scientists%20theorize%20that%20it%20may%20be%20the%20result%20from%20declining%20numbers%20in%20the%20seal%26%238217%3Bs%20main%20food%20sources.%20%28Photo%20Credit%3A%20Jordan%20Spielman%29