Mammals

LATEST TODAY'S CATCH

West Indian Manatee Portrait

May 17, 2013 - 9:24AMWest Indian Manatees, Trichechus manatus, are found in warm, shallow coastal ecosystems along the southeastern North America and northeastern South America. They graze plants in mangrove ecosystems and seagrass beds, occasionally...
Apr 4, 2013 - 9:22AM
Humpback whales (Megaptera novaengliae) can be found in Antarctic waters...
Apr 3, 2013 - 9:04AM
Harp seals are protected in the United States by the Marine Mammal...

SPOTLIGHT

Tagging of Pacific Predators (TOPP)

The TOPP program brought together scientists from seven countries to explore the lives of large mid-water animals such as...
May 17 2013 - 9:24am
West Indian Manatees, Trichechus manatus, are found in warm, shallow coastal ecosystems along the southeastern North America and northeastern South America. They graze plants in mangrove ecosystems and seagrass beds, occasionally eating small fish or invertebrates.
Jan 26 2010 - 11:45am
New England Aquarium researchers Dr. Moira Brown and Yan Guilbault conducting aerial surveys for North Atlantic right whales over the Roseway Basin, Canada. More about right whales can be found in the Tale of a Whale photo essay.
Jul 27 2012 - 10:34am
The common bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops truncatus) has lungs, but doesn't breathe through its mouth. Instead, toothed whales breathe through a blowhole on top of their head. Read more about dolphins and other toothed whales in our fact sheet.
Jan 26 2010 - 11:45am
An early scale model of North Atlantic right whale Phoenix indicates the location of scars on her tail from entanglements with fishing gear. More about the right whale can be found in our Tale of a Whale featured story.
Apr 3 2013 - 9:04am
Harp seals are protected in the United States by the Marine Mammal Protection Act. Although they are not considered endangered, as sea ice melting earlier and earlier each year, available harp seal breeding grounds are being lost in the North Atlantic and Arctic. 
The Wandering Fur Seal
Jan 14 2011 - 3:03pm
During the winter and spring months, tagged fur seals migrate thousands of miles in open water. Scientists are watching this species closely in order to determine the mystery of its population decline, as less and less return each year. Explore other videos that capture the beauty and mystery of...
Mar 23 2010 - 2:31pm
Walruses use sea ice as platforms on which to nurse their young and launch their dives for clams and other bottom-dwellers. Each spring, walruses move northward to stay close to these perches as ice melts in the south -- but as more and more sea ice melts because of climate change, they may not...
Dec 7 2009 - 3:10pm
Polar bear siblings in the Churchill Wildlife Management Area near Hudson Bay spar playfully during migration.
Moby Dick s Boom Box  Sound Production in Sperm Whales
Nov 18 2011 - 11:20am
Dr. Stefan Huggenberger from the University of Cologne explains sound production in sperm whales in "Moby Dick's Boom Box: Nasal Complex of Sperm Whales," a presentation at the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History on Nov. 16, 2011.
Sep 12 2011 - 4:40pm
The evolution of whales represents one of the great stories in macroevolution. It's a narrative that has mostly benefitted from an extraordinary series of fossils recovered from rocks around the world, including challenging field areas in Egypt, Pakistan, and India. 
Jan 26 2010 - 11:45am
North Atlantic right whales and ocean-going vessels often cross paths.
Jan 26 2010 - 11:45am
Phoenix is seen skim feeding off the coast of Maine in August 2004. More about the right whale can be found in our Tale of a Whale featured story.
Jan 5 2011 - 2:21pm
Researchers from the SOCAL-10 research partnership study the behavior of orcas (commonly called killer whales) and how they react to sonar.
Jan 26 2010 - 11:45am
This close-up photo of a right whale's head shows dozens of hitchhikers—tiny crustaceans known as whale lice, or cyamid amphipods. They live on the rough patches of skin (known as callosities) on North Atlantic right whales, eating algae that settles there and only causing minor skin damage....
Feb 24 2012 - 1:00am
Scientists from the U.S. and Greece are working from opposite sides of the ocean to save the Hawaiian (pictured here) and Mediterranean monk seals. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species has declared both species to be critically endangered.
Jan 26 2010 - 11:45am
Since 1987, researchers have been tracking Phoenix. More about whales can be found in our Tale of a whale featured story.