They say that creatures often sense things happening to the environment before people. Here Elephant Seals are assisted by robotics -- yup -- ROBOTICS!

CNN Technology Reports:

"Elephant seals equipped with electronic tags and robotic mini submarines using sonar were just two projects during the International Polar Year (IPY) that aimed to investigate the effects of global warming in polar regions.

The fourth IPY, which began in March 2007 and actually covered two full years, ended last month, after 160 scientific projects were undertaken by researchers from over 60 countries. A joint project by the International Council for Science (ICSW) and World Meteorological Organization. (WMO), the IPY hoped to spearhead efforts to better monitor and understand the Arctic and Antarctic regions." See full article