A sediment core was collected from the Fildes Peninsula of Antarctica, which contained numerous seal hairs and was identified to be seal excrement deposition. By analyzing its total organic carbon (TOC) and concentrations of bio-elements, the seal population changes of the past century were reconstructed. The variation of seal population in the last century on the Fildes Peninsula is primarily controlled by human activities. The sealing industry in the early 20th century caused the dramatic decline of seal popula-tion. The protection of the Antarctic seals since the 1960s and the reduced seal's competition with whales for prey resources due to whaling lead to the recovery of seal population and make the high level of the seal population sustainable.
YANG QiChaoSUN LiGuangKONG DeMingHUANG TaoWANG YuHong
As the topmost predator in Antarctica,the seal is a unique indicator of Antarctic environment and climate changes.In this study,we collected a sediment core from the Fildes Peninsula of West Antarctica,and used cholesterol,cholestanol,epicoprostanol,coprostanol,and seal hair numbers as the proxy indicators of seal population size and phytol as of general vegetation,and we reconstructed the 20th century history of variation of the seal population and vegetation abundance on this island.The sealing industry in the early 20th century caused the dramatic decline of seal population,and the ban of seal hunting since the 1960s led to its recovery of seal population.The seal population during the past century was primarily controlled by human activities and krill density.The reconstructed relation between seal population and vegetation abundance may offer new insights into Antarctic environment and ecology.
