Does location matter in the development and habits of sea lions?
Posted February 16th, 2009Question from Curious student:
I heard Dr. Costa say that the three populations of sea lions (California, Benito (?) and Galapagos) show radically different foraging behavior. Are their body sizes similar? How deep they dive? What about conservation....are they all in the same status, or are there some species that are doing better than the others?
Answered by DanielCostaThere are two basic populations of California sea lions, one in the coast of California (from Baja northward) and one in the Gulf of California (Sea of Cortez). Then there is the Galapagos sea lion, which is a different species, same genus. It used to be the same species.
Sea lions along the California coast tend to forage in the open ocean, making relatively shallow short dives. They feed on schooling fish and squid.
In the Sea of Cortez and Galapagos, the sea lion populations are smaller and they feed deeper and in the Galapagos to the bottom. Their dives in these regions are deeper and longer.
Along the Coast of California the sea lion population is very large and increasing or recently stabilized. In Galapagos, the population is well below its historic levels and is vulnerable. However, they are widely distributed and appear to be stable. The population in the Sea of Cortez is similarly smaller than along the coast, but is also stable.
