Arctocephalus forsteri

New Zealand fur seal
Conservation status
Least Concern  (IUCN 3.1)
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Mammalia
Order:	Carnivora
Suborder:	Pinnipedia
Family:	Otariidae
Subfamily:	Arctocephalinae
Genus:	'Arctocephalus'
Species:	''A. forsteri''
Binomial name
Arctocephalus forsteri Lesson, 1828
Distribution of the New Zealand fur seal

Arctocephalus forsteri, the New Zealand fur seal or southern fur seal, is a species of fur seal found around the south coast of Australia, the coast of the South Island of New Zealand, and some of the small islands to the south and east of there. Male-only colonies are also located on the Cook Strait coast of the North Island near Wellington and vagrants are found as far north as New Caledonia. The English name New Zealand fur seal is used by English speakers in New Zealand (kekeno is used in the Māori language), and southern fur seal by English speakers in Australia. Although the two populations show some genetic differences, their morphologies are very similar, and thus they remain classed as a single species.

Although the seals look docile, they can move surprisingly quickly and it is advisable never to approach a female with young or get between a seal and the water, cutting off its escape route to the sea.

Physical characteristics

Males have been reported as large as 250 kg; their average weight is about 126 kg. Males can be 2 meters long. Females are between 30–50 kg on average, and can be as long as 1.5 meters. Pups are 3.3-3.9 kg on average, and between 40 and 55 cm long. At 290 days old males are about 14.1 kg, and females are about 12.6 kg. They have external ears and hind flippers that rotate forward, which visibly distinguish them from other seals. They have a pointy nose with long pale whiskers. The fur seals are covered by two layers of fur. The coat is grey-brown on their back, and lighter on their belly. Some have white tips on longer upper hairs, which can give them a silver-like appearance.

Behavioral characteristics

Diving

New Zealand fur seals "porpoise" out of the water when traveling quickly at sea. They can dive deeper and longer than any other fur seal. Females can dive for about 9 minutes and to a depth of about 312 meters, and can dive deeper and longer in autumn and winter. Males can dive for about 15 minutes to a depth of about 380 meters. On average New Zealand fur seals only dive for 1–2 minutes. When they dive for food they dive deeper during the day but shallower at night, because during the day their prey typically migrates to deeper depths and migrates back up during the night.

Communication

Males vocalize through a bark or whimper, either a gluttural threat, a low-intensity threat, a full threat, or a submissive call. Females growl and also have a high-pitched pup attraction wail call.

Breeding

Female New Zealand fur seals mature between 4 and 6 years old, and males mature between 8 and 10 years old. These seals are polygynous. Males obtain and guard territory in late October before females arrive. Often females only mate once a year, and this usually occurs eight days postpartum for about 13 minutes on average. Females have a delayed implantation of the fertilized egg, so that implantation on the uterine wall does not occur for 3 months. Gestation occurs for 9 months Females are more aggressive near the time of birth, and do not like to be approached right after birth. Female New Zealand fur seals will continue to reproduce until their death which is on average between 14 and 17 years of age.

Parenting

Pups are born between November and January. Females stay close to the birth site for up to ten days. Pups are fairly mature at birth, and within 60 minutes they start suckling for about 7 minutes. Eventually the suckling can exceed 33 minutes. Suckling can occur for about 300 days. Pups start to eat solid food just before weaning. Pups are eventually weaned around September, and they disperse.

Diet

Their diet includes cephalopods, fish, and birds. Stomach contents have been analyzed and shown to include anchovy, barracuda, flounder, hagfish, lamprey, red cod, school shark, and many other species. There are different factors that affect their diet, such as season, sex, breeding, surrounding colony, oceanography, and climatic patterns.

Predators

New Zealand fur seals’ known predators are killer whales, sharks, male New Zealand sea lions, and possibly leopard seals. New Zealand sea lions are also known to target pups as their prey.

Human impact

These seals were widely hunted from shortly after the European discovery of New Zealand until the late 19th century. The population of the New Zealand seal fell to levels under 10% of the original numbers. Today trawls and fisheries are one of the main sources of death in New Zealand fur seals. They cause entanglement and drowning. It has been estimated by the Royal Forest and Bird Protection Society that over 10000 seals could have drowned in nets between 1989 and 1998. They are also known to be shot by commercial and recreational fishermen, because they sometimes interfere with fishing gear. How often these shootings occur is unknown, but the conflict between the seals and commercial fisheries is expected to increase. On August 21 2014, two decomposing animals were found beheaded near Louth Bay in South Australia. The circumstances of their deaths were considered suspicious and an investigation followed their discovery.

Legislative protection

New Zealand fur seals received protection by the creation of a 16 million hectare Marine Park located on the eastern side of Macquarie island in 2000. The Tasmanian government has also extended to Macquarie Island Nature Reserve by 3 nautical miles surrounding the island. In New Zealand, the species is protected by the Marine Mammals Protection Act of 1978, which works to conserve marine animal species. In Australian Commonwealth waters, Arctocephalus forsteri is protected under the Environment Protection Biodiversity Conservation (EPBC) Act 1999 under which it is listed as a protected marine species.

Region	Listed as	Legislation
NSW	Vulnerable	Threatened Species Conservation Act 1995 (New South Wales)
SA	Marine mammal	National Parks and Wildlife Act 1972 (South Australia)
TAS	Rare	Threatened Species Protection Act 1995 (Tasmania)
WA	Other protected fauna	Wildlife Conservation Act 1950 (Western Australia)

Gallery

• 
  New Zealand fur seal Arctocephalus forsteri, South Island, New Zealand
• 
  New Zealand fur seal coming ashore below Taiaroa Head, near Dunedin
• 
  New Zealand fur seal cubs at Palliser Bay

Sources

• Template:RefAudubonMarineMammals

External links

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• Cook Strait seal colonies