One in a thousand, leucistic Antarctic fur seal, friendship, pigment, anamoly, nature's beauty, rare animal, fur seal pups, hauled-out, nursery group, creche
The pleated belly of a dead minke whale which stranded dead on the Ardnamurchan Peninsula in July 2020. Although the cause of death was not determined by a pathologist, a large scar through the mouth was consistent with entanglement in fishing gear: the ultimate fate for about half of all minkes found dead in Scotland. The visually-striking pleated throat allows their belly to stretch to accommodate prey-laden water. In the seas around the Hebrides, they prefer sandeel and herring.