New Zealand Sea Lion Facts
- The highly informative term of New Zealand Sea Lion serves as the most frequently used common name for this remarkable product of Nature. Yet, the impressive animal does have other titles. These include the tags Hooker’s sea lion, Whakahao, and Southern sea lion.
- Inside of the scientific community, however, it’s perhaps better known by its technical designation. Like many such monikers, though, that one’s somewhat difficult for the layperson to pronounce. That’s because the pinniped holds the official appellation of Phocarctos hookeri.
- The marvelous creature received this technical epithet due to the efforts of John Edward Gray. The esteemed British zoologist recorded the first formal recognition of it as a separate and distinct species. He accomplished this scientifically noteworthy deed in the year 1844.
- The intriguing product of evolution currently holds several scientific distinctions. Sadly, the principal of these isn’t a positive one. That’s due to the lamentable fact that it presently ranks as one of the world’s rarest sea lion species. It also represents the sole member of its Genus.
- The estimated population of the New Zealand Sea Lion currently stands at approximately 12,000 individuals. Though its population continues to decline, protective measures put into place appear to have slowed this, at least. The IUCN now lists it as Endangered on its Red List.
- It faces multiple threats to its continued existence as a species. Some of these qualify as specific, such as subsistence hunting and commercial sealing. Yet, it also now faces the same global perils all forms of life on earth today do, such as habitat loss and climate change.
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New Zealand Sea Lion Physical Description
The New Zealand Sea Lion is a remarkable mammal that never fails to capture the attention of those fortunate enough to encounter one. The amazing animal does so for a variety of reasons, though. Its sheers size doubtless ranks high on any such list. It’s one of the largest in the entire world.
In terms of that aspect of its nature, however, it shares an attribute common in its relatives. That’s the fact that it displays a certain degree of the physiological characteristic of sexual dimorphism. In its case, this trait manifests itself with males being significantly larger than the females.
Mature males attain maximum body lengths measuring up to 10 ft (3.1 m). Most individuals do remain slightly smaller than this, though. In terms of mass, specimens of this gender average between 700 – 1,000 lb (320 – 450 kg). Exceptional examples sometimes exceed even this.
Females of the species, meanwhile, only reach lengths averaging between 5 – 6.5 ft (1.6 – 2 m). The difference in mass remains even greater. For them, this typically only ranges from between 200 – 360 lb (90 – 165 kg). Again, even the exceptional examples of the gender rarely exceed these greatly.
The overall body structure otherwise remains the same for both sexes. This remains robust, but obviously much more so among males. It’s also quite streamlined, thus being well-adapted for swimming. The animal also has two paddle-like flippers that aid in propulsion through the water.
The New Zealand Sea Lion also shows differences in coloring. Males display dark brown or black fur, often appearing darker with age. These also often have a thick, mane-like ruff of fur around the neck. Females and juveniles are lighter in color, with a pale yellowish-brown or greyish coat.
The head evolved as broad, with a blunt, short muzzle. The whiskers grow long and sensitive, helping the mammal detect movement in the water. It has large, dark eyes, well-adapted for underwater vision. It also has small, external ear flaps, which distinguish it from true seals.
- Kingdom: Animalia
- Phylum: Chordata
- Class: Mammalia
- Order: Carnivora
- Family: Otariidae
- Genus: Phocarctos
- Species: P. hookeri
New Zealand Sea Lion Distribution, Habitat, and Ecology
This impressive creature evolved as indigenous to a highly limited portion of the surface of the earth. The precise location of that zone of habitation won’t surprise anyone, however, given its very name. That’s because, as that title indicates, it’s mainly native to southern regions of New Zealand.
Even there, however, this marvel of Nature mainly appears in certain areas. These include such locations as several subantarctic islands. Those include the Auckland Islands and Campbell Island. Other regions with a presence include the South Island, the Otago Peninsula and Stewart Island.
Though its range unfortunately remains severely limited, the intrepid animal itself displays a surprising amount of flexibility regarding its choice of habitat. It’s therefore seen inhabiting a moderately wide variety of both coastal and marine environments across the entirety of that range.
The massive pinniped frequently appears on various sandy beaches where these are available in its territory. Yet, the animal also uses such other locations as rocky shores, dunes, and sometimes even grassy areas for resting, particularly on islands where there’s little human disturbance.
In some very rare cases, it’s also been known to rest and breed surprising distances inland, venturing into forested and scrub-covered areas. This qualifies as unusual behavior for pinnipeds and vividly highlights the extreme adaptability of the intriguing species to various types of terrain.
This wonder of evolution additionally stands out for another reason. It also ventures into deeper waters beyond the continental shelf. There, it dives tp depths of over 2,000 ft (600 m) in search of prey. In addition to its other unique attributes, this makes it one of the deepest-diving pinnipeds.
This extraordinary animal feeds as a pure carnivore. Indeed, it also represents an apex predator in its region. It principally feeds on a wide variety of fish species. These include such species as hoki and red cod, among others, which remain abundant in the waters around its breeding grounds.
Its dietary fare certainly doesn’t end there, though. Squid, particularly arrow squid, also form a large part of its diet. The carnivore also hunts octopus, particularly in deeper waters. It often dives to great depths to forage on bottom-dwelling species like skates, rays, and sometimes crustaceans.
The New Zealand Sea Lion breeds in large colonies, usually on sandy beaches on subantarctic islands like the Auckland and Campbell Islands. Males establish territories and compete for access to females during the breeding season. A dominant male sometimes mates with multiple females.
Females give birth to a single pup in December or January after a typical gestation period of 12 months. Mothers then nurse their pups for about a year, though weaning often begins after 6-8 months. During this time, the mother must balance caring for her pup on land and foraging at sea.
Given their great size, fully mature adults of the mammal have very few natural predators, though sharks and orcas occasionally prey on them. Pups and juveniles remain much more vulnerable to predation, however. That’s particularly true in the case of such threats as larger seabirds like skuas.
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