{"id":37039,"date":"2026-04-11T20:30:22","date_gmt":"2026-04-11T23:30:22","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/localhost:8012\/GabrielPaladino.com\/2026\/04\/11\/bed-of-mussels\/"},"modified":"2026-04-11T20:30:22","modified_gmt":"2026-04-11T23:30:22","slug":"bed-of-mussels","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/pelecyphora.ddns.net:60123\/GabrielPaladino.com\/2026\/04\/11\/bed-of-mussels\/","title":{"rendered":"Bed of Mussels"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n <\/p>\n

One of the true giants of the Uruguayan coast, this Southern Elephant Seal (Mirounga leonina) made an unexpected appearance near the port of Punta del Este. While local sea lions are a common sight in the harbor, this visitor chose a quieter spot to rest.<\/p>\n

The animal lay still on a bed of mussels, with the Atlantic tide occasionally washing over its skin. Its size and the absence of a large proboscis suggest this is likely a female or young sub-adult.<\/p>\n

The deep, angular wounds on its head are likely bite marks from the breeding season \u2014 a common injury in this species, affecting both females and males. After this rest on the shell-covered shore, the seal will return to the ocean and continue its journey.<\/p>\n

\u2022 Southern elephant seal
\u2022 Elefante marino del sur<\/p>\n

Scientific classification:<\/b>
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Carnivora
Suborder: Pinnipedia
Family: Phocidae
Genus: Mirounga
Species: M. leonina<\/p>\n

Punta del Este, Maldonado, Uruguay<\/p>\n

\n
\n \"Mapa
\n <\/a>\n<\/div>\n

Camera:<\/b> Canon EOS R7
\"Canon<\/p>\n

Lens:<\/b> Sigma 150-600mm F5-6.3 DG OS HSM | Contemporary
\"Sigma<\/p>\n

Capture Information:<\/b>
\n Focal Length: 157.0 mm
\n Shutter Speed: 1\/400
\n Aperture: f\/6.3
\n ISO: 100\n<\/p>\n

Photo Taken: April 11, 2026
\n High resolution<\/a>
\n Flickr Gallery<\/a>\n <\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

One of the true giants of the Uruguayan coast, this Southern Elephant Seal (Mirounga leonina) made an unexpected appearance near the port of Punta del Este. While local sea lions are a common sight in the harbor, this visitor chose a quieter spot to rest. The animal lay still on a bed of mussels, with […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"jetpack_seo_schema_type":"","_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[2],"tags":[34,635,640,757,1091,16382,1579,16383,15061,2532,3023,3140,3197,3421,4393,14549,14550,16387,4566,4914,4954,5352,5354,6200,14548,7915,7937,7942,7943,8053,8057,14556,16384,14547,14554,16385,8863,8867,8871,9179,14557,14553,10119,14555,10259,16386,10806,11172,11580,11759,11816,11973,12009,16389,14558,14551,12280,12572,13644,13775,14084,14094,16388,14331,14333],"class_list":["post-37039","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-related-posts","tag-150-600","tag-animal","tag-animalia","tag-aquatic","tag-atlantic","tag-bed-of-mussels","tag-biology","tag-cama-de-mejillones","tag-canon-eos","tag-carnivora","tag-chordata","tag-classification","tag-coastal","tag-conservation","tag-ecosystem","tag-elefante-marino","tag-elefante-marino-del-sur","tag-elephant-seal","tag-eos","tag-fauna","tag-female","tag-gabriel-paladino-ibanez","tag-gabrielpaladino-com","tag-hembra","tag-leonina","tag-maldonado","tag-mamifero","tag-mammal","tag-mammalia","tag-marine","tag-marine-fauna","tag-marine-mammal","tag-mejillones","tag-mirounga","tag-mirounga-leonina","tag-mussels","tag-natural","tag-naturaleza","tag-nature","tag-ocean","tag-ocean-wildlife","tag-phocidae","tag-photography","tag-pinniped","tag-pinnipedia","tag-puerto-de-punta-del-este","tag-punta-del-este","tag-resting","tag-salvaje","tag-scientific","tag-seashore","tag-shore","tag-sigma","tag-sigma-150-600mm","tag-south-atlantic","tag-southern-elephant-seal","tag-species","tag-subadult","tag-uruguay","tag-vertebrate","tag-wild","tag-wildlife","tag-wildlife-portrait","tag-zoologia","tag-zoology","has-post-thumbnail"],"tags_input":"150-600,animal,animalia,aquatic,Atlantic,bed of mussels,biology,cama de mejillones,Canon EOS,carn\u00edvora,chordata,classification,coastal,conservation,ecosystem,elefante marino,elefante marino del sur,elephant seal,eos,fauna,female,Gabriel Paladino Iba\u00f1ez,gabrielpaladino.com,hembra,leonina,maldonado,mam\u00edfero,mammal,mammalia,marine,marine fauna,marine mammal,mejillones,Mirounga,Mirounga leonina,mussels,natural,naturaleza,nature,ocean,ocean wildlife,Phocidae,photography,pinniped,pinnipedia,Puerto de Punta del Este,Punta del Este,resting,salvaje,scientific,seashore,shore,sigma,Sigma 150-600mm,South Atlantic,southern elephant seal,species,subadult,uruguay,vertebrate,wild,wildlife,wildlife portrait,zoologia,zoology","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/phjlBv-9Dp","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":33804,"url":"http:\/\/pelecyphora.ddns.net:60123\/GabrielPaladino.com\/2025\/08\/16\/mirounga-leonina\/","url_meta":{"origin":37039,"position":0},"title":"Mirounga leonina","author":"Gabriel Paladino Ib\u00e1\u00f1ez","date":"August 16, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"One of the giants of the Uruguayan coast, the southern elephant seal (Mirounga leonina), is an uncommon but impressive visitor to the Punta del Este region. 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