This month's articles series will discuss... Admiralty Island, Alaska!
Admiralty Island is an island in the Alexander Archipelago, in Southeast Alaska. The island is the 7th largest island in the United States, & the 132nd-largest island in the world. The nearest main city is Juneau, the state capital.
The island has extremely few people, with a population density of 0.39 per square mile The total population is 650, which makes it so that the bears outnumber the humans 3:1.
The island is famous for its large population of brown bears, & its beautiful canoeing areas. The island is approximately 2.59 nautical miles (2.980519 miles or 1.398488 kilometers) from mainland Alaska. Since the island's coast is so untouched by man, many marine animals migrate close to this island every year. The majority of oceanic animals don’t live here year-round though, as they tend to migrate further south in the winter to survive. There isn’t much seagrass around this area either, because the water temperatures make it very hard for anything to survive. One of the creatures that can survive though, is the Steller Sea Lion.
The Steller Sealion is a species of Sea Lion found from Honshu, Japan, to Año Nuevo Island, California. They are found across the Bering Strait, & tend to stay in colder areas. The males are extremely fat, while the females are much slimmer looking, making it very easy to distinguish the sex.
They are not friendly animals, & can be extremely aggressive if their children are threatened by any source. For this reason, people should generally avoid interaction with these creatures unless it is necessary. It is also illegal in the United States to interfere with these creatures in their natural habitats. They tend to congregate on rocks, & socialize this way. They are the largest of all the eared seals, & the third largest of all the pinnipeds.
In this article, we will discuss the Discovery & Life of the Steller Sea Lion, the Mating Procedures, Practices, Cycles, Tactics, & Strategies of the Steller Sea Lion, the Distribution of the Steller Sea Lion, & the Scientific Detailings of the Steller Sea Lion. With that being said, let us delve into this massive oceanic creature.
The Discovery & Life Of The Steller Sea Lion
The Steller Sea Lion was first described in the year 1776, & was first described by Johann Christian Daniel von Schreber. The species was named after Georg William Steller, who was one of the first people to interact with them in 1741.
The males are an astounding 11 feet (3.3528 meters), while the females only reach about 9.5 feet (2.8956 meters). There is a massive sexual dimorphism between the two sexes, with the males being approximately 2.5 U.S. tons (2267.96 kilograms), while the females only reach 800 pounds (362.874 kilograms). The females can live for up to 30 years, while the males are only able to live for up to 20.
Sea lions are brilliant creatures, behaving much like cats at times. Sea lions can perform tricks, remember commands, & have a long-term memory of at least 3.5 months. Usually, though, they aren’t very agreeable creatures, which is why they are much like cats. During a study in which two flower pots were placed in front of a female sea lion named Zwerg, & she was rewarded if she touched the instructed flower pot, it was discovered that Zwerg would pick the correct flower pot 83% of the time. This experiment was conducted by Lauren Highfill, in the Schönbrunn Zoo. They are also able to show affection towards humans they hold in high regard, & each other.
It is unknown how long exactly this species has existed, but it has to be a minimum of 120,000 years, & a maximum of 220,000 years based on fossil records of similar sea lion species. These creatures are naturally very timid, & they do not usually interact with humans in the wild. They can be aggressive towards other sea lions, & even humans if provoked enough.
Sea Lions have many different captive populations around the globe, which would prevent them from going extinct if some disease were to break out. They are territorial, but they usually don’t begin holding one territory until at least the age of 9 years old. They are rather social creatures & usually rest in extremely large groups. They sleep by hauling themselves onto rocks, & sunbathing as they nap. They rarely sleep underwater, as that could result in drowning.
They swim by rapidly pulling their front flippers forward & back. At top speed, they swim at top speeds of 17 miles per hour (27.3588 kilometers per hour). This species is rather agile, as individuals swim hundreds of miles each month.
Their diet is primarily fish-based with over 100 species of fish comprising their nutritional base. The most common species of fish they consume are Pacific Cod, Walleye Pollock, Atka Mackerel, & Pacific Salmon. They eat between 5 to 8% of their body weight in fish per day. Usually, they hunt at least 1 mile (1.60934 kilometers) away from the coast. Usually, they will forage for multiple days on end, to maintain their body weight. They locate food by feeling the ripples with their whiskers. Occasionally, they will seek out commercial fish nets, to steal already caught fish from the nets. This is rare, but it has happened before. Once the fish is caught, it will promptly be swallowed whole. They are not cannibalistic in any way, shape, or form. Their metabolism is fairly fast, similar to that of seals. Usually, they hunt strictly nocturnally.
They have very few predators apart from orcas, & sharks due to how massive they are. Steller sea lions have a bulky build & a very thick neck with longer fur that resembles a lion's mane, hence the name "sea lion." Their skin ranges from a pale yellow to a light grey color. Sea lions also shed their fur every year, so they may look different depending on the season.
Their current IUCN Red List Status is Near Threatened, with the last population assessment being on February 4th, 2016. Their population trend is increasing, with approximately 81,327 mature individuals. Conservationists are actively observing the population of Steller Sea Lions, & making sure that the population makes a proper recovery.
The Mating Strategies, Tactics, Procedures, Cycles, & Practices Of The Steller Sea Lion
The Steller Sea Lion breeds via sexual reproduction. This species has two distinct sexes, & is not hermaphroditic. Their breeding system is polygamous. Their mating season is between June & August. They tend to mature between 3-7 years of age sexually but don’t usually hold stable breeding territories until 9. Their gestational period is similar to that of humans, being approximately 9 months. Fertility for this species usually peaks when they are most at the halfway point of their lives. The females will court the males by lying in submissive poses in front of them. After the couple decides to breed with each other, they will breed in a safe location.
Usually, only 1 pup is had per pregnancy due to the size of the pups. The pups will be weaned for approximately 1 year before beginning to consume solid foods, & beginning to mature into young adulthood. The mothers will care for these babies, & defend them fiercely from any threat. Approximately 25 days after giving birth, the females will breed again, & give birth every May or June.
The Distribution Of The Steller Sea Lion
The Steller Sea Lion is found from Honshu, Japan, to Año Nuevo Island, California. They are migrational, as they migrate south in the winter to avoid the frigid conditions. They tend to prefer extremely cold waters, & rocky coastal areas. Usually, they are in either sandy/rocky beach areas or wharves. Oftentimes, they can be seen sleeping on wharf docks. During Hunting Season, they will dive to extreme depths to hunt fish more effectively.
The world record deepest dive for this species is approximately 1,400 feet. Between the 1970s & 2010, there was a mysterious decline in the population of adult female sea lions, that has been not entirely explained. Due to this issue, they were placed on the endangered species list in 1990. Thankfully, the population did replenish, which led to them being officially removed from the list in November of 2013.
The Scientific Detailings Of The Steller Sea Lion
The oldest fossil of this species was discovered to be approximately 800,000 years old. This fossil was male, & named GKZ-N 00001. This fossil was found in Kanazawa, Japan, which is located along the western coast of Japan's Honshu island.
The Steller Sea lion has a bone structure similar to that of humans, in that they both have finger bones. Though they are not visible, the Steller Sea Lion has finger bones that are in their forelimbs. They have between 34 & 38 teeth, used for tearing parts of the fish in order to make the fish more digestible.
Their phylum is Chordata, meaning that they developed these 5 characteristics all species under the phylum of Chordata develop 5 similar characteristics either In adulthood or as juveniles. The characteristics that they develop include, a notochord, dorsal hollow nerve cord, endostyle or thyroid, pharyngeal Slits, & a post-anal tail.
Their class is known as Mammalia. Mammalia is classified by the production of milk by the mother for their child to nurse, a neocortex which is a region of the brain, some capacity oforfur or hair, & three middle ear bones.
Their order is Carnivora which is a monophyletic order of placental mammals. These mammals have all evolved in ways to specialize in eating fish. This order is the 5th largest order of mammals & has at the time of publishing, at least 279 species categorized under it.
Their clade is Pinnpedia, meaning they are Pinnipeds. Pinnipeds are a heavily distributed & extremely diverse clade of semiaquatic species & marine mammals.
Their family is Otariidae, which is a family of Eared Seals, with approximately 15 extant species. All Creatures in this family are strangely enough, not found in the North Atlantic. All species in this family have visible ear flaps, instead of ear holes.
Their Genus is Eumetopias, which is a monotypic genus. A monotypic genus is a genus in which there is only one species. The binomial name of the Steller Sea Lion is Eumetopias Jubatus.
Directories / Credits
Citation No. 1: “Steller Sea Lion” Written By Unknown & Published at An Unknown date. Published by the National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration. Retrieval Date: September 27th, 2023.
Citation No. 2: “Sea Lion Smarts” Written by S. Dingfelder, & Published in 2007. Published by the American Psychological Association. Retrieval Date: September 27th, 2023.
Citation No. 3: “Steller Sea Lion - Biology Fast Facts” Written By Unknown, & Published at an Unknown date. Published by the Marine Mammal Research Unit at the University of British Columbia. Retrieval Date: September 27th, 2023.
Citation No. 4: “Steller Sea Lion” Written By Unknown & Published at an Unknown date. Published By the IUCN Red List. Retrieval Date: September 27th, 2023.
Citation No. 5: “The oldest record of the Steller sea lion Eumetopias jubatus (Schreber, 1776) from the early Pleistocene of the North Pacific” Written by Nahoko Tzuzuku & Naoki Kohno, & Published at an Unknown Date. Published by the National Center For Biotechnology Information. Retrieval Date: September 27th, 2023.
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