Polar Week Photo Competition Spring 2016

My colleague Thomas Schaefer and I encountered this bleeding Weddell Seal in Austral Spring 2016 during sea ice thickness measurements at Atka Bay close to Neumayer Station. A seal expert told us that the wounds did most probably occur in a fight with an other seal for a breathing hole. Moreover, Weddel Seals have a much higher amount of blood than humans and can withstand a high blood loss. We traced back the blood trail for more than two kilometers, however they disappeared into nothingness.