A map of the world showing the location of Antarctica

Jim McMahon

What are those furry bodies on this slab of sea ice? They’re lounging crabeater seals, one of six species of seal that live in Antarctica. Photographer Florian Ledoux took the image with a drone equipped with a camera in 2018. 

It recently won him a major nature photography award! 

Despite their name, crabeater seals don’t feed on crabs. Instead, they dive up to 250 meters (820 feet) deep to hunt for shrimp-like creatures called krill. The seals climb onto sea ice to sleep and give birth. Scientists estimate that there are between 5 million and 10 million crabeater seals in Antarctica. But as rising temperatures cause sea ice to melt, those numbers might decline.

Ledoux hopes his photos will help people appreciate Earth’s polar regions. “They support all life on Earth,” he says.