Antarctic pack-ice seal research, February and March 1995

As upper trophic level predators with a circumpolar distribution, the antarctic pack ice seals (crabeater, Lobodon carcinophagus; leopard, Hydrurga leptonyx; Ross, Ommatophoca rossii; and Weddell, Leptonychotes weddelli) provide a potential source of information about ecosystem interactions and environmental variability integrated over a wide range of spatial and temporal scales. In recent years, increasing attention has been focused on the need to conduct antarctic pack-ice seal research, and a multifaceted international research initiative to address priority pack-ice seal research topics is being developed: the Antarctic Pack Ice Seals (APIS) Program.