Pinniped High levels of organic chemicals accumulate in these animals since they are near the top of food chains and have large reserves of blubber. Lactating mothers can pass the toxins on to their young. These pollutants can cause gastrointestinal cancers, decreased reproductivity and greater vulnerability to infectious diseases. Other man-made threats include habitat destruction by oil and gas exploitation, encroachment by boats, and underwater noise. Pinniped Pinnipeds, commonly known as seals, are a widely distributed and diverse clade of carnivorous, fin-footed, semiaquatic marine mammals. They comprise the extant families Odobenidae (whose only living member is the walrus), Otariidae (the eared
March Mammal Madness lecturer at Columbia University Joshua Drew, and assistant professor at Dominican University Christopher Anderson. Along with these educators, the artist Charon Henning provides artwork of the various mammal competitors throughout the whole tournament. Together, they heavily research all of the combatants, using what they learn to provide an entertaining and informative experience. In 2017, more educators were added on to the March Mammal Madness team to help with the competition. This includes Ph.D. student at the University of Notre Dame Mauna Dasari, postdoctoral fellow at the University of Notre Dame Marc Kissel, post-doctoral researcher and instructor at the University of