Transcript Pinnipeds for Swiftx

Pinnipeds
FEATHER-FOOTED
Pinnipeds
• “Feather-footed”
• Phocidae - True “earless” seals
• 9 species
• Otariidae - “eared seals”
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5 sea lion species
9 fur seal species
• Odobenidae
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“Tooth Walker”
Walrus
2 sub-species
Harbor Seal
• Most widely
distributed
• Temperate and
tropical
• Arctic and
subarctic
http://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/pr/species/mammals/pinnipeds/harborseal.htm
Marine Mammal
Protection Act
Elephant Seals
• Coast of Alaska to Baja
• Sexual dimorphism
• 1500m – 1.5-2 hours
http://www.afsc.noaa.gov/nmml/education/pinnipeds/nelephant.php
Ringed Seal
• Arctic
• Polar bear diet
• Climate change
http://www.afsc.noaa.gov/nmml/education/pinnipeds/ringed.php
Ringed Seal
Sub-Species
• Endangered
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Ladoga
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Arctic
Okhotsk
Baltic
• Threatened/Depleted
http://www.afsc.noaa.gov/nmml/education/pinnipeds/ringed.php
Bearded Seal
• Arctic
• Important polar bear
food source
• Climate change
http://www.afsc.noaa.gov/nmml/education/pinnipeds/bearded.php
Monk Seals
• Hawaiian
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Critically
endangered
• Mediterranean
• Caribbean
• extinct
http://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/pr/species/mammals/pinnipeds/hawaiianmonkseal.htm
Leopard Seal
• Antarctic
• Climate change
and krill fisheries
http://www.afsc.noaa.gov/nmml/education/pinnipeds/leopard.php
Weddell Seal
• Antarctic
• Climate change and
krill fisheries
http://www.afsc.noaa.gov/nmml/education/pinnipeds/weddell.php
California Sea Lions
• W. Coast of North America
Dams
• Bonneville Dam
• Columbia River
• Endangered salmon
Stellar Sea Lions
• North Pacific rim from
Alaska to California
• Sea Lion Caves (Oregon)
Stellar Sea Lions
• Listed as threatened in 1990
• Western range listed as
endangered in 1997
• Why?
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Incidental take and competition
from fisheries
illegal and legal shooting
predation or certain diseases
Climate change
• Affect prey availability More
vulnerable to certain diseases or
contaminants
Fur Seals
• Northern
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6 locations in the North Pacific
and Bering Sea
• Southern (Antarctic)
http://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/pr/species/mammals/pinnipeds/northernfurseal.htm
Northern Fur Seals
• Hunted without
regulation until 1911
• Recovered by 1950s
• But down by 50% now
• Evidence of continual
decline
http://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/pr/species/mammals/pinnipeds/northernfurseal.htm
Walrus
• Pacific and Atlantic
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Not listed as
endangered or
threatened
USFW determined
that it is warranted
that they should be
considered.
(Summer 2014)
Candidate species
http://www.fws.gov/refuge/Togiak/wildlife_and_habitat/walrus.htm
U.S. Geological Survey
Tracking the Pacific Walrus:
Expedition to the Shrinking Chukchi Sea Ice
http://gallery.usgs.gov/videos/600#.VDwLt010xD8
Walrus Vibrissae
• Each vibrissa (whisker) has its
own nerve and blood supply
Walrus Diet
• Benthic prey
(clams, worms,
bottom fish, etc.)
• 3000-6000/day
• Shallow water
• Hours at time
Walrus Tusks
• Elongated canine teeth.
• Both male and female
• Haul out
• Defense
Other Challenges for survival?
Toxins
• Agricultural
Pesticide, lasting
effects of oil
spills, oil from
vehicles, etc.
• Accumulates in
blubber
Commercial Fishing
• Unsustainable
• Damage habitat
(trawling)
• Benthic organisms
• Competition for
resources
Informed Consumer
• Ask
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Where does this seafood
come from
How is it fished/farmed?
• Share your knowledge
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Write a letter to your
grocery store
Contact restaurants
asking them to purchase
sustainable seafood
Share APP with friends
and family
http://www.seafoodwatch.org/se
afood-recommendations/our-app
Sound Pollution
• Boat traffic
• Low flying planes
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Walruses especially
vulnerable in when
hauled out.
Become nervous and
may trample young
pups
• Drilling
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May cause them to
move to areas that
have less food
Entanglement
• Marine debris
• Fishing nets and line
PDZA
E.T.
• Found orphaned as a pup
in Prudhoe Bay, AK in 1982
• 3,400-4,500 lbs
• Knows over 100
behaviors
PDZA
Joan
• Born in the wild in 1995
• Weighs about 1500 lbs
Basilla
• Born in the wild in
1984
• About 2000 lbs
Came to PDZA in 2006
from Brookfield Zoo in Chicago, IL.
Walruses in U.S. Zoos
• 6 males and 11 females
(6.11 walruses)
• 7 U.S. facilities
(PDZA, New York Aquarium, Indianapolis Zoo, Six
Flags Discovery Kingdom, Sea World-Orlando,
Texas and California)
• Began keeping in the 1930’s
• Only 6 successful births
(defined as surviving past 1 year of age)
• Study of captive populations
needed to understand wild
populations
Why no tusks?
• Tusks up to 3 feet long
• Tusks were removed because they had
tooth infections
• A tusk infection that doesn’t respond to
medicine could be lethal
PDZA
Blackie & Louise
• Females
• Born in the wild near
Grayland, WA in 1976
& 1977
Qilak & Shila
• Females
• Born in the wild in 2004 & 2005
• Came to PDZA in 2009 from Alaska Sea Life Center
PDZA
Hogan
• Male
• Born June 2, 2013
@ PDZA to Shila
Saya
• Female
• Born June 10, 2013
@ PDZA to Qilak