“…For example, Antarctic fur seals, Arctocephalus gazella (Peters), are relatively shallow divers (mean depth, duration: 4.9-37.4 m, 0.37-1.44 min), while southern elephant seals, Mirounga leonina (L.), can dive to considerable depths for prolonged periods (mean depth, duration: 269-589 m, 16-37 min; maximum depth, duration: 1430 m, 120 min) (Boyd and others 1994;Slip and others 1994). Only two groups of arthropod parasites are transported by either seal: sucking lice (Echinophthiridae: Anoplura: Hexapoda) and nasal mites (Halarachnidae: Gamasida), both of which have highly modified respiratory systems to cope with the extreme pressures encountered during deep diving (Kim 1975;Pugh 1996a). The Halarachnidae includes only one species, Halarachne miroungae Ferris, which occurs throughout the Southern Ocean (Tables 1 and 4).…”