We watch as a bull tries to mount a cow, lumbering after her in the sand, biting her neck, and pinning her with a huge flipper. The female, not yet in estrus, screams in protest, trying to get back to her pup and escape the bull. Near the breakers, two huge bulls battle for supremacy, slamming their chests into each other, bellowing, and biting. The battle rages for a pitiless moment, given that neither animal has eaten for more than a month, and finally one backs away, revealing the scars left on his chest from previous years. Even in the harems, where goings-on seem slow, a closer look reveals a maelstrom.
Females fight for beach space or cover themselves with sand and nurse their young.
A young male lumbers toward a harem with his nose hidden in the sand in an attempt to deceive a nearby alpha male. If you're standing upright, you're a threat. Neither seems a good option. In the ocean, elephant seals move with a grace that is uncontestable, diving at depths only challenged by the Sperm Whale , feeding on squid, bottom fish, and small sharks. On land, they move with the ungainly power of a bulldozer.