| Summary: | Newborn southern elephant seal pups were reported by Laws (1953) to be “to some extent poikilothermic at birth.” Rectal temperatures of known age southern elephant seal pups were recorded during the 1985 pupping season at Macquarie Island. The mean pup rectal temperature was found to be 381°C ± 0.1°C SEM (n= 131, range = 36.5°‐39.1°C). Pups at two hours, six hours, and one day after birth had significantly higher rectal temperatures than pups two, three, or four days of age. Rectal temperatures of neonatal southern elephant seals were within the range observed for other pinnipeds, (but never as low as the 31°C previously observed for southern elephant seals at Signy Island in 1953). A significant though weak positive correlation was found between pup temperature and body weight. However, no correlation between pup temperature and age or any environmental factor was found. These observations demonstrated that southern elephant seal pups at Macquarie Island are homeothermic, rather than heterothermic from birth.
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