UNEP-WCMC - New Zealand Sea Lion

GEOGRAPHICAL SPREAD The New Zealand Sea Lion has a very restricted range within the New Zealand Subantarctic. The main colonies are on the Auckland Islands (50�S, 166�E), Snares Island (48�S, 166�E) and Campbell Island (52�S, 169�E). They also reach the mainland of South Island.

CURRENT POPULATION Total population 10,000 to 15,000.

SIZE Length of males 2.5 to 3.5m. Length of females 2.0m.

WEIGHT Males are notably heavier than females. Males 300 to 450kg. Females 160kg.

AVERAGE LIFE EXPECTANCY Unknown. Pup mortality at the end of one year is about 35 per cent.

NORMAL DIET Cephalopods, prawns, crabs, crayfish and small fish make up the majority of the species diet. Occasionally penguins are taken.

NORMAL LIFESTYLE The New Zealand Sea Lion breeds in colonies, between October and January. Out of the breeding season the species is not known to make any lengthy migrations.

PREVIOUS GEOGRAPHICAL SPREAD There is little evidence that this species ever had a larger range. When Macquarie island was discovered in 1810 there was no evidence of sea lions.

REASONS FOR DECLINE The remoteness of colonies, means that no harvesting or hunting has taken place. The species has been threatened by the major squid fisheries operating within its range.

CURRENT THREATS Commercial squid fisheries have posed a threat to the sea lion since the 1970s. Incidental catch within fishing nets is high compared to the small population size. There is a 2.4 per cent female mortality relating to incidental catches. There is also a high juvenile mortality caused by the presence of rabbit burrows.

CONSERVATION PROJECTS The IUCN have urged the New Zealand Government to declare a Marine Mammal Sanctuary and take effective measures to protect the New Zealand Sea Lion and promote an increase in their population. The IUCN/SSC Seal Specialist Group suggest the following conservation measures: an examination of effects of incidental catch on age and reproductive status, a revision of fishing regulations to reduce incidental mortality, the management of rabbit populations and ariel surveys and ground counts. The New Zealand Sea Lion is categorised as Vulnerable on the 1994 IUCN Red List of Threatened Animals.

SPECIAL FEATURES

REFERENCES

Reeves, R.R., Stewart, B.S. & Leatherwood, S. 1992. The Sierra Club Handbook of Seals and Sirenians. Sierra Club Books, San Francisco. 359 pp.

Reijnders, P., Brasseur, S., van der Toorn, J., van der Wolf, P., Harwood, J., Lavigne, D. & Lowry, L. (eds). 1993. Seals, Fur Seals, Sea Lions and Walrus. Status Survey and Conservation Action Plan. IUCN, Gland. 88 pp.

Walker, G.E. & Ling, J.K. 1981. New Zealand Sea Lion Phocarctos hookeri (Gray, 1844). In: Ridgway, S.H. & Harrison, R.J. (eds), Hanbook of Marine Mammals, Vol.1: The walrus, sea lions, fur seals and sea otter. Academic Press, London, pp.25-38.

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