Our Logo

It was important to the LeopardSeals.org team that our logo design reflected the many facets of New Zealand leopard seals including their appearance, behaviour, cultural significance and importance to New Zealander’s. We approached graphic artist Andrea Bosiger who kindly donated her time and skills to help us develop the logo you see here.

Leopard Seals are remarkable in so many ways, but one feature that we continually notice, especially when the leopard seals are in the water, is their agility and flexibility. Our circular logo, with the leopard seal curved in a supple arch, was one way to portray their unique appearance and movements.

Additionally, we wanted to recognise that New Zealand leopard seals are a native species and as such we wanted to have a unique logo which incorporated art in the form of traditional Māori spirals, known as koru’s. They represent the beginning of life and renewal.

This dual significance is relevant on a number of levels; we have collected data that indicates leopard seals have likely been in New Zealand longer than humans and; that cultural Māori links, through the recognition of the species as taonga (treasures), goes back hundreds of years.

Furthermore, as our research data set expanded we came to realise that there is a strong contemporary recognition of the species, through their occurrences in urban areas and the general public’s interest in the species. Our logo, by including our toll-free number and website, was a way to recognise the public’s desire for information on these animals as well as their wish to help protect leopard seals through citizen science and reporting sightings.