<Tr> <Td> </Td> <Td> M. angustirostris </Td> <Td> northern elephant seal </Td> <Td> eastern Pacific Ocean </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> </Td> <Td> M. leonina </Td> <Td> southern elephant seal </Td> <Td> South Atlantic </Td> </Tr> <P> Elephant seals spend up to 80% of their lives in the ocean . They can hold their breath for more than 100 minutes--longer than any other noncetacean mammal . Elephant seals dive to 1,550 m beneath the ocean's surface (the deepest recorded dive of an elephant seal is 2,388 m (7,835 ft) by a southern elephant seal). The average depth of their dives is about 300 to 600 m (980 to 1,970 ft), typically for around 20 minutes for females and 60 minutes for males, as they search for their favorite foods, which are skates, rays, squid, octopuses, eels, small sharks and large fish . Their stomachs also often contain gastroliths . They spend only brief amounts of time at the surface to rest in between dives (2 - 3 minutes). Females tend to dive a bit deeper due to their prey source . </P> <P> Elephant seals are shielded from extreme cold by their blubber, more so than by fur . Their hair and outer layers of skin molt in large patches . The skin has to be regrown by blood vessels reaching through the blubber . When molting occurs, the seal is susceptible to the cold, and must rest on land, in a safe place called a "haul out". Northern males and young adults haul out during June to July to molt; northern females and immature seals during April to May . </P>

How long can an elephant seal hold its breath