AnimalID

Name

5404

Elephant Seal

LocationName:

Northern Pacific Ocean

Origin:

Marine Mania expansion

PurchaseCost:

$1,500

RequiresResearch:

No

IsClimber:

No

IsJumper:

No

 

General Information

Building an Exhibit

The Life Cycle

Who do they like to live with and eat?

 

Description:

The northern elephant seal, or Mirounga angustirostris, is the second largest seal in the world (the southern elephant seal is the largest). An adult male of the species can grow over 13 feet long and weigh as much as 5,000 pounds. The elephant seal gets their name from the large nose of the mature male members of this species, which normally resembles the trunk of an elephant. When these animals get angry, however, they can inflate their noses to warn off their rivals in dominance fights.

Adult elephant seals have a dark silvery-brown coat, which they molt each year, shedding both their layer of fur and their layer of skin beneath. Seal pups have a shiny black coat that is replaced by the adult coloration after their first molt. Although their flopping movement on land appears ungainly, these animals are amazingly graceful underwater. They can hold their breath for at least 20 minutes and in rare cases for up to an hour, and they can dive deeper than most marine animals. Males have been known to dive as deep as 4,000 feet. Typically, they rest at the surface for three to five minutes between dives to breathe. These depth-loving animals can even sleep underwater, sometimes hundreds of meters deep.

Found in temperate waters off the west coast of the United States and southern Canada, the northern elephant seal travels in small groups called rafts. When these rafts join together on land, they are referred to as colonies. Very large groups of female seals gather to birth their pups in areas known as rookeries. These rookeries are usually located on warm beaches in California and Mexico, while the rest of the year is spent in the feeding grounds along the northern coast of the United States and Canada.

Male seals arrive first at these rookeries, seeking to establish dominance. Up to 50 females eventually join them. Only one male can be the alpha male of a rookery at any one time, although the ranks may change throughout the breeding season. When the alpha male feels threatened, he may start out using vocal threats as warnings, but these can quickly degenerate into violent and bloody battles. In these fights, the males use long canine teeth as weapons and fight both on land and in the water. It isn’t just the adult males that exhibit dominance behavior--dominant females in the harem fight for the best places to give birth and raise their pups. Even male pups stage mock battles, practicing for adulthood.

Elephant seals eat a variety of foods, many of them found at great depths. They have been known to eat cephalopods (like squid and octopi), fish, eels, skates, rays, and red crabs, among other foods. During their deepest dives they can hunt pelagic or bottom-dwelling creatures such as ratfish, swell sharks, spiny dogfish, and rockfish. When females leave the water to give birth and nourish their pups they can go without food and water for long periods of time, living off their fat alone. Because of the depths at which they feed, elephant seals tend to feed alone or in small groups.

Northern elephant seals may fall prey to orcas or sharks, but their greatest predator is man. Humans have hunted these seals to the edge of extinction. Prized for their blubber that could be made into lamp oil, human hunting brought the total number of northern elephant seals on the planet below 100 in the late 1800s. Today, conservation programs have brought those numbers back to about 150,000--proof that man can sometimes undo the damage of the past.

 

Attractiveness Adult:

Attractiveness Young:

Initial Happiness:

Habitat Preference:

50
65
60
70

Captivity:

Crowd:

CrowdHappiness Change:

ClimbsCliffs:

5
40
-5
No

 

General Information

Building an Exhibit

The Life Cycle

Who do they like to live with and eat?

 

To build a good animal exhibit you need to ask a few questions: (click them for the answers)

Which tank wall is suitable for this animal?     Remember that all tanks need a tank filter!

How big should the exhibit be and what Depth should the tank be?

What foliage should be used?

What rocks should be used?

What shelter does the animal need?

What toy does the animal like?

Does this animal perform in a show?

No

 

TankWallName

Purchase Cost

See Through

Height

Strength

Life

Cost Effective

Low Chain-link Fence
$45
Yes
1
200
10
22.2
Low Stick Pole Fence
$55
Yes
1
225
11
20.0
Stick Pole Window Fence
$75
Yes
2
225
12
16.0
Stick Pole Fence
$75
No
2
225
12
16.0
Low Post and Rail Fence
$70
Yes
1
250
11
15.7
Chain-link Fence
$70
Yes
2
200
10
14.3
Post and Rail Fence
$90
Yes
2
250
12
13.3
Low Wooden Slat Fence
$85
Yes
1
240
11
12.9
Wood Slat Window Fence
$110
Yes
2
240
12
10.9
Wooden Slat Fence
$110
No
2
240
12
10.9
Atlantean Tank Wall
$125
Yes
3
500
13
10.4
Concrete Edge and Glass
$125
Yes
3
500
13
10.4
Solid Concrete
$125
No
3
500
13
10.4
Black Bar and Glass
$130
Yes
3
500
13
10.0
Low Iron Bar Fence
$125
Yes
1
290
12
9.6
Low Concrete Chain Fence
$125
Yes
1
275
12
9.6
Low Rock Wall Fence
$125
Yes
1
280
12
9.6
Low Plexiglas Fence
$125
Yes
1
270
12
9.6
Low Concrete Fence
$125
Yes
1
300
12
9.6
Rock Wall Fence
$150
No
2
280
14
9.3
Rock Window Fence
$150
Yes
2
280
14
9.3
Concrete Chain Fence
$150
Yes
2
275
14
9.3
Plexiglas Fence
$150
Yes
2
270
13
8.7
Iron Bar Fence
$180
Yes
2
290
14
7.8
Concrete Fence
$200
No
2
300
15
7.5
Angled Railing and Glass
$175
Yes
3
500
13
7.4
Reinforced Concrete Fence
$225
No
3
460
16
7.1
Reinforced Concrete and Glass Fence
$225
Yes
3
420
15
6.7
Concrete and Iron Bar Fence
$240
Yes
3
440
15
6.3
Electrified Chain-link Fence
$300
Yes
3
480
18
6.0
Electrified Iron Bar Fence
$350
Yes
3
400
18
5.1

 

General Information

Building an Exhibit

The Life Cycle

Who do they like to live with and eat?

 

Animal Density

Min

Number of Animals/Exhibit

Max

50

2

 

6

TankDepth
4
  
28

Terrain Name

Value

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

Saltwater
75
38
75
113
150
188
225
263
300
338
375
Gray Stone
15
8
15
23
30
38
45
53
60
68
75
Snow
10
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
40
45
50

Rocks

6
12
24
36
48
60
72
84
96
108
120

Foliage

6
3
6
9
12
15
18
21
24
27
30

Exhibit Size

100
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
400
450
500

 

General Information

Building an Exhibit

The Life Cycle

Who do they like to live with and eat?

 

ID

Value

TreeName

Foliage Effect

Cost/ Square

Cost Effective

7402
8
Beach Grass
32
$320
10.0
7097
16
Arctic Grass
24
$400
6.0
7098
16
Arctic Bush
24
$600
4.0
7088
3
Horsetail
12
$500
2.4
7096
13
Arctic Birch Tree
3
$200
1.5

 

General Information

Building an Exhibit

The Life Cycle

Who do they like to live with and eat?

 

ID

Value

RockName

Size X

Size Y

Rock

Rock Effect

Purchase Cost

Cost Effective

9206
13
Small Rock
1
1
Yes
52
$55
94.5
9205
13
Medium Rock
1
1
Yes
52
$75
69.3
9235
6
Small Ocean Floor Rock
1
1
Yes
24
$100
24.0
9200
17
Large Rock
2
2
Yes
17
$150
11.3
9219
13
Small Snowy Rock
1
1
Yes
12
$75
16.0
9218
13
Medium Snowy Rock
1
1
Yes
12
$85
14.1
9241
6
Isle Rock
8
8
Yes
6
$150
4.0
9240
6
Iceberg
8
8
Yes
6
$200
3.0
9239
6
Large Coral Formation
4
6
Yes
6
$175
3.4
9238
6
Medium Ocean Floor Rock
2
2
Yes
6
$150
4.0
9237
6
Large Ocean Floor Rock
4
4
Yes
6
$165
3.6
9236
6
Medium Coral Formation
4
4
Yes
6
$150
4.0
9221
13
Large Snowy Rock
2
2
Yes
3
$185
1.6
9220
13
Large Snowy Rock
2
2
Yes
3
$175
1.7
9211
17
Snowy Rock Formation
8
2
7
$700
1.0

 

General Information

Building an Exhibit

The Life Cycle

Who do they like to live with and eat?

 

Shelter ID

Shelter Name

Shelter Value

Shelter Effect

Purchase Cost

Capacity

Requires Research

 

none

 

 

 

 

 

 

General Information

Building an Exhibit

The Life Cycle

Who do they like to live with and eat?

 

ToyID

ToyName

ToyValue

PurchaseCost

6505
Ice Floe
20
$600
6509
Raft
20
$600

 

General Information

Building an Exhibit

The Life Cycle

Who do they like to live with and eat?

 

ReproductionChance:

High

SickChance:

5

ReproductionInterval(months):

5

SickChange:

-12

HappyReproduceThreshold:

90

DeathChance:

20

Offspring:

1

TimeDeath(months):

12

BabyToAdult(months):

4

 

 

SkipTrickHappiness:

none

SkipTrickChance:

none

 

SalinityChange:

-10

SalinityHealthChange:

-20

PooWaterImpact:

5

MurkyWaterThreshold:

60

MurkyWaterChange:

-5

MurkyWaterHealthChange:

-5

VeryMurkyWaterThreshold:

20

ExtremelyMurkyWaterThreshold

1

VeryMurkyWaterChange:

-10

ExtremelyMurkyWaterChange

-15

VeryMurkyWaterHealthChange:

-10

ExtremelyMurkyWaterHealthChange:

-15

 

General Information

Building an Exhibit

The Life Cycle

Who do they like to live with and eat?

 

Compatible Animals

Prey Animals

California Sealion

5

KeeperFoodType:

Fish

Mermaid

10

Lion's Mane Jelly

 

Green Moray Eel

Pacific Octopus

Giant Squid

Bluefin Tuna

Great Barracuda

 

General Information

Building an Exhibit

The Life Cycle

Who do they like to live with and eat?