Life can be tough in Antarctica so it helps to have a good pal you can share a joke with.

This elephant seal and his little Gentoo penguin friend seem to be getting on like a house on fire in these pictures snapped by Canadian teacher Jean-Francois Hic.

The two animals, both juveniles, seem to be sharing a joke in these images taken by Mr Hic while he was on holiday on Livingston Island, just off the Antarctic Peninsula.

Young Gentoo penguins are sometimes eaten by leopard seals but elephant seals are not among their predators, hence the good-natured relationship between this pair.

The southern elephant seal can be seen behind the Gentoo penguin looking like its listening to a whispered joke. Classical French teacher Jean-Francois Hic took these snaps while on an Antarctic holiday

In the second image the seal appears to be guffawing at the penguin's wisecrack

The seal opens his mouth and the penguin turns away. Is he embarrassed or just trying to avoid the seal's halitosis?