| Guadalupe Fur Seal | ||||||||||||||||||
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| Arctocephalus townsendi Merriam, 1897 |
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 Dark blue: breeding colonies; light blue: other colonies. Clinton Hart Merriam ( December 5 1855 - March 19 1942) was an American zoologist ornithologist entomologist and ethnographer Year 1897 ( MDCCCXCVII) was a Common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian Calendar (or a Common
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The Guadalupe Fur Seal (Arctocephalus townsendi) is a fur seal. Fur seals are any of nine species of Pinnipeds in the Otariidae family It is one of six members of the Arctocephalus genus, but the only one to be found in the Northern Hemisphere. The genus Arctocephalus consists of eight of the nine species of Fur seal. Northern Hemisphere is the half of a Planet that is North of the Equator —the word hemisphere literally means 'half ball' Sealers reduced the population to just a few dozen by the late 19th century, but the species had recovered to 10,000 in number by the late 1990s. The 19th century of the Common Era began on January 1, 1801 and ended on December 31, 1900, according to the Gregorian calendar Many individuals can be found on Mexico's Guadalupe Island. The United Mexican States ( or commonly Mexico (ˈmɛksɪkoʊ () is a federal constitutional Republic in North America. Guadalupe Island, or Isla Guadalupe ( is a volcanic island located 241 kilometers (150 Statute miles off the west coast of Mexico 's Baja
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Biology
Guadalupe fur seals are sexually dimorphic in size, with the males being much larger than females, although few specimens have been measured. Individuals of both sexes are dark brown or dusky black, with the guard hairs on the back of the neck being yellowish or light tan. Pups are born with a black coat similar to that of adults. Observations suggest that reproductive males are faithful to particular sites over a number of years. Tenure of territorial males lasts from 35-122 days. Births occur from mid-June through July, with most births taking place in June.
Distribution
Guadalupe fur seals breed along the eastern coast of Guadalupe Island, approximately 200 km west of Baja California. In addition, individuals have been sighted in the southern California Channel Islands, including two males who established territories on San Nicolas Island.
Impacts on Guadalupe Fur Seals
The major cause of the Guadalupe fur seal's decline was commercial hunting in the late 1700s and early 1800s. The species was exterminated in southern California waters by 1825. Commercial sealing continued in Mexican waters through 1894.
Recovery Efforts
No recovery plan for this species has been prepared, neither has a recovery team been established. The principal cause of the decline in Guadalupe fur seals was commercial sealing. The species is now protected from such activity throughout its range, and the magnitude of the threat to the species is considered to be low. The portion of the Guadalupe fur seal's range which is under U. S. jurisdiction is at the limit of the species range. No activities in areas under U. S. jurisdiction are known to be adversely affecting recovery of this species at the present time. Therefore, management activities in the U. S. portion of its range are not likely to contribute substantially to recovery. However, Guadalupe fur seals are protected from Federal actions that are likely to jeopardize the species through interagency coordination under Section 7 of the Endangered Species Act. No other specific actions necessary for the recovery of the species have been identified, and no direct recovery actions are being implemented.
References
- Belcher, Rebecca L. ; and Thomas E. Lee, Jr. (2002). "Arctocephalus townsendi". Mammalian Species (700):1–5.
- Randall R. Reeves, Brent S. Stewart, Phillip J. Clapham and James A. Powell (2002). National Audubon Society Guide to Marine Mammals of the World. Alfred A. Knopf, Inc. ISBN 0375411410.
- Seal Specialist Group (1996). Arctocephalus townsendi. 2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species (also known as the IUCN Red List or Red Data List) created in 1963 is the world's most comprehensive inventory of the global IUCN 2006. Retrieved on 10 May 2006. Listed as Vulnerable (VU D2 v2. 3).
External links
- ARKive - images and movies of the Guadalupe fur seal (Arctocephalus townsendi)
- Fur Seal Preys on Penguin