New Zealand Sea Lion

About the New Zealand Sea Lion

The New Zealand sea lion (Phocarctos hookeri), once known as Hooker's sea lion, and as pakake (for both male and female) or whakahao (male) and kake (female) in Māori, is a species of sea lion that is endemic to New Zealand and primarily breeds on New Zealand's subantarctic Auckland and Campbell islands, and have in recent years been slowly breeding and recolonising around the coast of New Zealand's South and Stewart islands. The New Zealand sea lion population estimate is less than 10,000 individuals and fewer than 5,000 breeding adults. This number has declined from an estimated population of over 15,000 in the early 2000s, and it is one of the world's rarest sea lion species. It is the only species of the genus Phocarctos.

New Zealand sea lions are one of the largest New Zealand animals. Like all otariids, they have marked sexual dimorphism; adult males are 240–350 centimetres (7.9–11.5 ft) long and weigh 320–450 kilograms (710–990 lb), while adult females are 180–200 centimetres (5.9–6.6 ft) long and weigh 90–160 kilograms (200–350 lb). At birth, pups are 70–100 centimetres (2.3–3.3 ft) long and weigh 8–10 kilograms (18–22 lb); the natal pelage is... Wikipedia →