Elephant seal and ocean plastic
by Diana Studer
- gardening for biodiversity
in Cape Town, South Africa
Elephant seal
For a few weeks our beach walks have circled around Buffel
the subantarctic elephant seal. He comes ashore each year for a month to moult,
living off his blubber. He doesn't just shed his fur, but also his skin,
leaving bits on the beach that look like teddy bears or rabbits. Buffel is 4.2
metres long and 1,200 kilograms. Nine years old, another year till he is fully
adult. Elephant for his inflatable proboscis! From IFAW
 |
| Subantarctic elephant seal Buffel before moulting |
At first he was the same silvery grey as the sand he lay on.
Volunteers made a token barrier of kelp. Later posts, tape and signs were
added. Please stay at a respectful
distance, quietly. Your dogs on leash.
 |
| Before in his old silver coat Buffel was hard to see against the sand |
Buffel was tagged in 2014 at Cape Point. His closest colony
is on Marion Island
almost two thousand kilometres to swim. From
Animal Ocean
After he moulted he uses his flippers to scatter sand over
his back to shield the sun. We have a sand sculptor on our beach. As we walked
towards Buffel I saw someone touching
Buffel ... but it was Michael
Myekwa at work!
 |
| Buffel our elephant seal has moulted |
When there are fish in False Bay, trek fishermen take their
small boat and net out. Back on the beach the full net is checked for by-catch
and they are good about returning rays, sunfish and sharks to the sea. This was
a bronze whaler shark.
 |
| Trek fishermen releasing by-catch Bronze whaler shark |
Yesterday and again this evening we will watch tracer
bullets arc across the sky. Heavy artillery firing behind our mountain, and the
earth moves and my ears hurt. Cape Town is the lucky recipient of this year's
military exercise. Supposedly remembering lives lost in 1917 with the sinking
of SS Mendi. Fighter jets. Tanks on the beach. Last night the cats (wary but not
disturbed) watched wildlife on TV with the Ungardener.
https://www.wavescape.co.za/surf-news/breaking-news/all-fired-up.html
https://za.toluna.com/opinions/4517483/The-Battle-Of-Muizenberg
Perfect for township children already traumatised by gang
warfare
https://www.vocfm.co.za/activists-in-uproar-over-sandf-armed-forces-shooting-display/
Ocean plastic
We went to the V&A Waterfront to visit Fleur
de Passion. Built for the German Navy in 1941 for coastal defence and
minesweeping. War spoils to France till the seventies. Rescued and restored
from 2001. Now under a Swiss flag and dedicated to researching microplastic
across the world's oceans.
 |
| Fleur de Passion researching ocean microplastic |
There have been 17 artists
in residence. Published sketchbooks to browse at their Our Spice
Island Exhibition. A page from Frederik Peeters from Geneva who sailed from
Madagascar to Mozambique.
 |
| Frederik Peeters |
His January hikes
in the mountains
around Cape Town
My Fynbos Rambles start again in March, but his invincible group
climbs every week. Watsonia tabularis
from Blackburn Panorama above Chapman's Peak Drive.
 |
| Watsonia tabularis |
Looking down at Hout Bay from Skoorsteenberg.
 |
| Down to Hout Bay from Skoorsteenberg |
From Third Rock Peak to a distant glimpse of the corner of
Table Mountain.
 |
| Distant glimpse of Table Mountain |
Blue Disa graminifolia
at Vlakkenberg.
 |
| Blue Disa graminifolia |
He hikes
with U3A each week.
I invite you to join us at Elephant's Eye on False Bay.
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Fascinating natural sights in your area. I enjoyed following the process of the Seal moulting. Beautiful views from the hikes remind me why I love to follow blogs showing the world through the eyes of those who live and experience these things daily.
ReplyDeleteI was hoping to see seals when I was away last weekend, but alas no they're in reserve for another visit. So it's a delight to see Buffel make an appearance on your blog. Chapman's Peak eh? I suddenly feel the urge to visit our namesake...
ReplyDeleteChapman's Peak Drive is so spectacularly beautiful that it is sometimes used for filming flashy new cars. It is a stretch of our coast that makes my heart sing.
Deleteand also where I picked up that map of Africa I use as my blog signature.
DeleteWhat a Watsonia!
ReplyDeleteBuffel is amazing.
Oh, that Disa! What a marvel it is - and Buffel too, of course. I'd never realized that elephant seals moult.
ReplyDeleteI think of snakes shedding their skin, or birds growing a fresh set of feathers, but fur AND skin is bizarre.
DeleteThank you so much for your post, I always learn something new when I click onto your blog! Buffel really is amazing and I think it wonderful that you all look after him so well.
ReplyDeleteI never knew about seals molting. Very interesting! The Disa graminifolia is gorgeous.
ReplyDeleteThe elephant seal must've been awesome to see. I feel like we're missing out a lot in Joburg :-(
ReplyDeleteBuffel came with the January full moon, and has left with the February full moon. We miss him!
DeleteAmazing! Never a dull moment where you live, Diana.
ReplyDeleteWhat wonderful adventures you have :) Thank you so much for sharing them, they are so exciting to my Irish eyes xx
ReplyDeleteIn your first photo, Buffel looks like he is stretched out for sunbathing! He is fascinating, and I have questions. Does he really travel all the way to Marion Island? Or does he stay in your area year round? Are there others like him nearby? What will he do when it's time to find a girlfriend?!
ReplyDeleteTo all your questions - yes - he will swim 2000 km back to Marion Island. He is tagged so we have bits of his story. Hope he might come back to our beach another year. He only comes ashore for this moulting month. We might hear about AN elephant seal in Cape Town, but not every year. I can only remember a few others.
DeleteOne link I saw was a mother and her baby at Cape Point, time wise that might have been baby Buffel!
This is really something, Diana, to watch that seal up close. Good luck to him, I hope he stays safe.
ReplyDeleteAmalia
xo
It must be lovely to have weather cool enough to resume your weekly hikes. I'm looking forward to enough warmth and ice melting to resume my morning walks.
ReplyDeleteI'm fanatic about picking up plastic trash. Since we are so close to the ocean, plastic trash ends up there if thrown on the ground. Makes me so angry.
ReplyDeleteElephant Seals were almost extinct along the California coast, but they have come back--its a wonderful thing. I feel like picking up every bit of plastic I see maybe helps a little bit.
What an amazing experience it must be to see Buffel every year. I had no idea that they shed their skin and fur. Does that only happen when they're pups or life long?
ReplyDeleteI read about the SS Mendi military exercise down there and it made me cross. I can understand the sentiment and honouring those who lost their lives, but children's lives are being lost on a daily basis in gang warfare and surely all that money could have been better spent on addressing that very real issue. And then there's the whole plastic thing. I don't even know what to say, we are such wasteful, disrespectful creatures. We only have one planet, unless I missed something and I cannot understand why we don't do everything we can to save her. Okay rant over, kinda. Thanks for sharing Diana, I always enjoy popping in
Elephant seals shed their skin every year, a month ashore every year. It is to do with them diving very deep in cold water.
Delete