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Home , Bearded seal, Ribbon seal, Ringed seal, Spotted seal, Steller sea lion

Alaska Sea and Seals

Blaire, Kate, Donovan, & Alex

Biodiversity of 18 June 2017

https://www.stlzoo.org/files/3913/6260/5731/Sea-lion_RogerBrandt.jpg Similarities & Differences of Sea Lions and Seals

Phocidae Family Otariidae Family

cannot rotate back can rotate back flippers flippers; move like a marine under themselves to walk caterpillar on land and run on land no external earflaps , “fin external earflaps footed” in use back flippers for Latin use front flippers for power when swimming power when swimming preyed upon by polar use front flippers for use back flippers for , orcas, steering when swimming steering when swimming and sharks food: , , lobster, food: , , birds birds, and fish claws and fur on front no claws or hair on front flippers flippers

Seals ("What’s the Difference “ 2017) Sea Lions Evolution

• Both seals and sea lions are • Descended from one ancestral line • Belong to order • Closest living relatives are bears and musteloids (diverged 50 million years ago)

http://what-when-how.com/marine-mammals/pinniped-evolution- (Churchill 2015) marine-mammals/ http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/cndy/2009-04/24/content_7710231.htm Phylogenetics

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pinniped Steller: Eumetopias jubatus

http://www.arkive.org/stellers-sea-lion/eumetopias-jubatus/image-G62602.html Steller: Eumetopias jubatus

• Classification (”Steller Sea ” 2017)

Kingdom: Animalia

Phylum: Chordata

Class: Mamalia

Order: Carnivora

Family: Otarridae

Genus: Eumetopias

Species: Jubatus Steller: Eumetopias jubatus

General Description • Size: • males: 2,500 lbs , 10-11 ft • females: 770 lbs , 7.5-9.5 ft • pups: 35-50 lbs , 3.3 ft

• Coloring: • adults: light blonde to reddish brown • pups: dark brown/black • Lifespan: • 20-30 years old

(“Steller ” 2017) Steller: Eumetopias jubatus

Life History • Growth & Reproduction: • use rookeries • males establish territory, multiple females (“Steller Sea Lions” 2017) • Feeding: • opportunistic (capellin, cod, , mackeral, , rockfish, salmon, squid, octopus, gastropods) (Fiscus 2017) • Behavior: • use haul-outs for rest • can dive up to 1300 ft, no migration • can walk on land (“Mammals” 2017) Steller: Eumetopias jubatus

• Distributed throughout the coast to continental shelf (Womble 2017) http://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/pr/species/mammals/sealions/steller-sea-lion.html • , central , Southern coast • Western Distinct Population Segment (DPS) = central and western , Aleutian islands, coastal waters Geographic Distribution • Eastern DPS = southeast Alaska, California, , and Oregon (“Mammals” 2017) Steller: Eumetopias jubatus

• Status: Endangered (Western DPS), Delisted (Eastern DPS) • Predators: orcas, sharks, humans • Efforts: protective zones, catch/hunting limits

(“Mammals” 2017) Bearded: Erignathus barbatus

http://sewardcitynews.com/2014/12/rare-opportunity-to-view-bearded-seal-at-the-alaska-sealife-center/ Bearded: Erignathus barbatus

Life History • Growth & Reproduction: • one pup per year • late April or early May

• Feeding: • feed benthically • invertebrates • bottom fish

http://www.alaska.org/assets/content/cache/made/assets/content/advice/Alaska_Species_Gui de/Marine%20Mammals/580_438_c1/Bearded_SealHarbor_Seals_AB.jpg • Behavior: • males vocalize during the breeding season • predators (“Mammals” 2017) Bearded: Erignathus barbatus

• Status: very common and low risk (least concern of ) • Life Span: 25 years old • Predators: polar bears, killer whales, , and Alaska Native hunters (“” 2015)

http://www.adfg.alaska.gov/index.cfm?adfg=beardedseal.main Bearded: Erignathus barbatus

Range and Habitat • follow the • south into Bering Sea and north into Chukchi and • juveniles found more in ice free zones than adults • shallow water http://www.adfg.alaska.gov/index.cfm?adfg=beardedseal.rangemap • high biomass areas of Geographic Distribution benthic prey • 150-200 m (“Mammals” 2017) Harbor: vitulina Harbor: Phoca vitulina

Life History • Diving: • adaptations

• Reproduction & Development: • single pups http://www.adfg.alaska.gov/index.cfm?adfg=harborseal.main • May and mid-July • swim almost immediately after birth • sexual maturity between 3 and 7 years

• Food: • opportunistic feeders • seasonally available resources (“” 2015) Harbor: Phoca vitulina

Life History • Movement: • no seasonal patterns

• Behavior: • solitary in water

• haul out in groups https://seagrant.uaf.edu/marine-ed/mm/images/harbor-seal-rev.jpg • enter water if threatened

• Species of Special Concern: • vulnerable to significant decline • causes are unknown • most common predator is the (“Harbor Seal” 2015) Harbor: Phoca vitulina

Range and Habitat • Dixon Entrance to Kuskokwim Bay and west throughout the Aleutian Islands • reefs, sand, and gravel beaches • glacial and sea ice

http://www.adfg.alaska.gov/index.cfm?adfg=harborseal.rangemap • seasonal movement to glacial fjords Geographic Distribution

(“” 2017) Northern Fur: Callorhinus ursinus

http://www.ejphoto.com/northern_fur_seal_page.htm Northern Fur: Callorhinus ursinus

Life History (“Mammals” 2017) • Growth & Reproduction: • Pribilof Islands • Males emit growling noises • Young mature around 5 years of age • Life span is about 25 years

• Feeding: • vast mixtures of food • Migration:

• males and females have different migration habits https://www.britannica.com/place/Alaska Northern Fur: Callorhinus ursinus

Range and Habitat • Pribilof Islands

http://www.adfg.alaska.gov/index.cfm?adfg=northernfurseal.rangemap

Geographic Distribution (“Mammals” 2017) Northern Fur: Callorhinus ursinus

Life History • Range and Habitat: • found normally between 10 and 100 miles offshore • Appearance: • mature seals have brown- black, dense pelts • males much larger than

females http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3005/2680894468_86e7612c40.jpg • History and Population: • discovered by • hunting became illegal in 1985 • Predators and Threats: killer whales, sharks, Steller Sea Lions

(“Mammals” 2017) Ribbon: Phoca fasciata

http://www.rcinet.ca/eye-on-the-arctic/2014/07/14/rare-ribbon-seal-sighting-in-prince-william-sound-alaska/ Ribbon: Phoca fasciata

Life History • Geography: • mostly located in the Bering Sea by Alaska

• Feeding: • large variety of marine food • primary food choice is fish

• Predators and Threats: • difficult to tell predators https://seagrant.uaf.edu/marine-ed/mm/fieldguide/ribbon-seal.html • live far from civilization • population is strong, in no way endangered

(“Mammals” 2017) Ribbon: Phoca fasciata

Life History • Appearance: • four rings on their bodies • 5.5 feet and 175 pounds

https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Histriophoca_fasciata • Migration: • little information due to their remote environment

• Range and Habitat: • young born on ice in April and May • snow drifts are the main defenses against snow along with their mothers

(“Mammals” 2017) Ringed: Phoca hispida

http://www.earthweek.com/2011/ew111216/ew111216g.html Ringed: Phoca hispida

Life History • Growth and Reproduction: • birth single pup • females breed month after giving birth • males omit odor

• Feeding http://www.npolar.no/npcms/export/sites/np/images/dyreliv/Ringsel_Kovacs.jpg_787994278.jpg • Artic cod, Saffron cod, , and other • Behavior: • live under sea ice • claws create breathing holes • Predators and Threats: killer whales, polar bears, walruses (“Mammals” 2017) Ringed: Phoca hispida

• Range and Habitat: • breeding seals à breeding territories • juvenile seals à migrate south • Geographic Distribution • Bering • Chukchi • Beaufort

• : • least concern

• Size • 4 ft, 120 lbs (“Mammals” 2017) Spotted: Phoca largha

https://alaskafurid.wordpress.com/2009/11/02/seal-spotted/ Spotted: Phoca largha

Life History • Growth and Reproduction: • birth single pup • monogamous throughout mating season • sexually active 4 years after birth

• Feeding https://seagrant.uaf.edu/marine-ed/mm/images/spotted-seal-rev.jpg • Cod, Herring, , , and Amphipods • Behavior: • found in family groups of three during spring • large haul-outs on sea ice • Predators and Threats: killer whales, polar bears, sleeper sharks, humans, (“Mammals” 2017) Spotted: Phoca largha

• Range and Habitat: • winter à southern sea ice • summer à migrate north

• Geographic Distribution • Bering • Chukchi • Beaufort

• Conservation Status: • least concern

• Size https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spotted_seal#/media/File:Spotted_seal_distribution_in_Bering_Sea_and_surrounding_areas.png • 5 ft, 200 lbs (“Mammals” 2017) Conservation

Seal and Sea Lion Conservation:

• National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS)

• Committee (ICS)

• Act (ESA)

• Treaty of 1944 • Subsistence hunting is still allowed because it is done in small enough proportions

(“NOAA Fisheries” 2010) (“NOAA Fisheries” 2015) CNN: “Girl Grabbed by Sea Lion”

http://www.cnn.com/2017/05/26/health/girl-grabbed-by-sea-lion-update-trnd/index.html Works Cited

"Bearded Seal (Erignathus Barbatus)." National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. NOAA Fisheries, 14 Jan. 2015. Web. 18 June 2017.

Churchill, M. 2015. Fossil Focus: Seals, sea lions and walruses. Palaeontology Online, Volume 5, Article 9

Fiscus, C. H., and G. A. Baines. "Food and Feeding Behavior of Steller and California Sea Lions." Journal of Mammalogy 47.2 (1966): 195-200.

JSTOR. Web. 17 June 2017.

Fisheries, NOAA. " (Eumetopias Jubatus)." NOAA Fisheries. NOAA Fisheries, 15 Jan. 2015. Web. 18 June 2017.

"Harbor Seal (Phoca Vitulina)." National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. NOAA Fisheries, 15 Jan. 2015. Web. 18 June 2017.

Kenyon, Karl W., and Dale W. Rice. "Abundance and Distribution of the Steller Sea Lion."Journal of Mammalogy 42.2 (1961): 223. JSTOR

[JSTOR]. Web. 17 June 2017.

"Mammals Found in Alaska, Alaska Department of Fish and Game." Mammals Found in Alaska. Alaska Department of Fish and Game, n.d. Web.

17 June 2017.

NOAA Fisheries. "Alaska Seals." Alaskafisheries.noaa.gov. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, 8 Nov. 2010. Web. 17 June 2017.

NOAA Fisheries. "Harbor Seal (Phoca Vitulina)." Fisheries.noaa.gov. National Oceanic and Atmosphere Administrations, 15 Jan. 2015. Web. 18

June 2017.

" Species Profile, Alaska Department of Fish and Game." Ringed Seal Species Profile,. Alaska Department of Fish and Game, n.d.

Web. 16 June 2017.

"What’s the Difference Between Seals and Sea Lions?" National Marine Life Center. NMLC, n.d. Web. 18 June 2017.

Womble, Jamie N., Michael F. Sigler, and Mary F. Willson. "Linking Seasonal Distribution Patterns with Prey Availability in a Central-place

Forager, the Steller Sea Lion." Journal of Biogeography 36.3 (2009): 439-51. JSTOR [JSTOR]. Web. 17 June 2017.