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Arctocephalinae
Fur seals are any of nine species of pinnipeds belonging to the subfamily Arctocephalinae in the family Otariidae. They are much more closely related to sea lions than true seals, and share with them external ears ( pinnae), relatively long and muscular foreflippers, and the ability to walk on all fours. They are marked by their dense underfur, which made them a long-time object of commercial hunting. Eight species belong to the genus '' Arctocephalus'' and are found primarily in the Southern Hemisphere, while a ninth species also sometimes called fur seal, the Northern fur seal (''Callorhinus ursinus''), belongs to a different genus and inhabits the North Pacific. The fur seals in ''Arctocephalus'' are more closely related to sea lions than they are to the Northern fur seal, but all three groups are more closely related to one another than they are to true seals. Taxonomy Fur seals and sea lions make up the family Otariidae. Along with the Phocidae and Odobenidae, ottariid ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Otariid
An eared seal, otariid, or otary is any member of the marine mammal family Otariidae, one of three groupings of pinnipeds. They comprise 15 extant species in seven genera (another species became extinct in the 1950s) and are commonly known either as sea lions or fur seals, distinct from true seals (phocids) and the walrus ( odobenids). Otariids are adapted to a semiaquatic lifestyle, feeding and migrating in the water, but breeding and resting on land or ice. They reside in subpolar, temperate, and equatorial waters throughout the Pacific and Southern Oceans, the southern Indian, and Atlantic Oceans. They are conspicuously absent in the north Atlantic. The words "otariid" and "otary" come from the Greek ' meaning "little ear", referring to the small but visible external ear flaps ( pinnae), which distinguishes them from the phocids. Evolution and taxonomy Morphological and molecular evidence supports a monophyletic origin of pinnipeds, sharing a common ancestor with Mustelo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sea Lion
Sea lions are pinnipeds characterized by external ear flaps, long foreflippers, the ability to walk on all fours, short and thick hair, and a big chest and belly. Together with the fur seals, they make up the family Otariidae, eared seals. The sea lions have six extant and one extinct species (the Japanese sea lion) in five genera. Their range extends from the subarctic to tropical waters of the global ocean in both the Northern and Southern Hemispheres, with the notable exception of the northern Atlantic Ocean. Sea lions have an average lifespan of 20–30 years. A male California sea lion weighs on average about and is about long, while the female sea lion weighs and is long. The largest sea lions are Steller's sea lions, which can weigh and grow to a length of . Sea lions consume large quantities of food at a time and are known to eat about 5–8% of their body weight (about ) at a single feeding. Sea lions can move around in water and at their fastest they ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Northern Fur Seal
The northern fur seal (''Callorhinus ursinus'') is an eared seal found along the north Pacific Ocean, the Bering Sea, and the Sea of Okhotsk. It is the largest member of the fur seal subfamily (Arctocephalinae) and the only living species in the genus ''Callorhinus''. A single fossil species, ''Callorhinus gilmorei'', is known from the Pliocene of Japan and western North America. Description Northern fur seals have extreme sexual dimorphism, with males being 30–40% longer and more than 4.5 times heavier than adult females. The head is foreshortened in both sexes because of the very short, down-curved muzzle, and small nose, which extends slightly beyond the mouth in females and moderately in males. The pelage is thick and luxuriant, with a dense underfur in a creamy color. The underfur is obscured by the longer guard hairs, although it is partially visible when the animals are wet. Features of both fore and hind flippers are unique and diagnostic of the species. Fur is absent o ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pinniped
Pinnipeds (pronounced ), commonly known as seals, are a widely range (biology), distributed and diverse clade of carnivorous, fin-footed, semiaquatic, mostly marine mammals. They comprise the extant taxon, extant families Odobenidae (whose only living member is the walrus), Otariidae (the eared seals: sea lions and fur seals), and Phocidae (the earless seals, or true seals), with 34 extant species and more than 50 extinct species described from fossils. While seals were historically thought to have descended from two ancestral lines, molecular phylogenetics, molecular evidence supports them as a monophyletic group (descended from one ancestor). Pinnipeds belong to the suborder Caniformia of the order Carnivora; their closest living relatives are musteloids (Mustelidae, weasels, Procyonidae, raccoons, skunks and red pandas), having diverged about 50 million years ago. Seals range in size from the and Baikal seal to the and southern elephant seal. Several species exhibit ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Antarctic Fur Seal
The Antarctic fur seal (''Arctocephalus gazella'') is one of eight seals in the genus '' Arctocephalus'', and one of nine fur seals in the subfamily Arctocephalinae. Despite what its name suggests, the Antarctic fur seal is mostly distributed in Subantarctic islands and its scientific name is thought to have come from the German vessel SMS Gazelle, which was the first to collect specimens of this species from the Kerguelen Islands. Taxonomy Antarctic fur seals are member of the genus ''Arctocephalus''. Recently, a proposal was made to reassign this species to the resurrected genus ''Arctophoca''. Antarctic fur seals may be confused with southern otariids that share their range, like Subantarctic (''A. tropicalis''), New Zealand (''A. forsteri''), and South American fur seals (''A. australis''), and the Juan Fernandez fur seal (''A. phillippii''), as well as the South American (''Otaria flavescens'') and New Zealand sea lions (''Phocarctos hookeri''). Genetic studies on populat ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Subantarctic Fur Seal
The subantarctic fur seal (''Arctocephalus tropicalis'') is a species of arctocephaline found in the southern parts of the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic Oceans. It was first described by Gray in 1872 from a specimen recovered in northern Australia—hence the inappropriate specific name ''tropicalis''. Description The subantarctic fur seal is medium in size compared with other fur seals. The two sexes are strongly sexually dimorphic: males grow to 2m and 160 kg, whereas females are substantially smaller—1.4m and 50 kg. Subantarctic fur seals have creamy-orange chests and faces. Their bellies are more brownish. Males have a dark grey to black back, while females are a lighter grey. Males have a characteristic dark tuft of hair on the top of their head that stands erect when they are excited. Pups are black at birth, but molt at about 3 months old. The snout is short and flat, and the flippers are short and broad. Subantarctic fur seals live for about 20–2 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
South American Fur Seal
The South American fur seal (''Arctocephalus australis'') breeds on the coasts of Peru, Chile, the Falkland Islands, Argentina, Uruguay and Brazil. The total population is around 250,000. However, population counts are sparse and outdated. Although Uruguay has long been considered to be the largest population of South American fur seals, recent census data indicates that the largest breeding population of A. a. australis (that breeds in Chile, the Falkland Islands, Argentina, Uruguay) are at the Falkland Islands (estimated pup abundance ~36,000) followed by Uruguay (pup abundance ~31,000). The population of South American fur seals in 1999 was estimated at 390,000, a drop from a 1987 estimate of 500,000 - however a paucity of population data, combined with inconsistent census methods, makes it difficult to interpret global population trends. Description South American fur seals have a dark grey or brown coat of fur. Adult males are much larger than females, with thicker necks and ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Arctocephalus Forsteri
''Arctocephalus forsteri'' (common names include the Australasian fur seal, South Australian fur seal, New Zealand fur seal, Antipodean fur seal, or long-nosed fur seal) is a species of fur seal found mainly around southern Australia and New Zealand. The name ''New Zealand fur seal'' is used by English speakers in New Zealand; ''kekeno'' is used in the Māori language. , the common name long-nosed fur seal has been proposed for the population of seals inhabiting Australia. Although the Australian and New Zealand populations show some genetic differences, their morphologies are very similar, and thus they remain classed as a single species. After the arrival of humans in New Zealand, and particularly after the arrival of Europeans in Australia and New Zealand, hunting reduced the population to near-extinction. Description Males have been reported as large as ; their average weight is about .Harcourt, R.G., (2001)"Advances in New Zealand mammalogy 1990–2000: Pinnipeds" ''Journ ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Frédéric Cuvier
Georges-Frédéric Cuvier (; 28 June 1773 – 24 July 1838) was a French zoologist and paleontology, paleontologist. He was the younger brother of noted natural history, naturalist and zoologist Georges Cuvier. Career Frederic was the head keeper of the menagerie at the Muséum d'Histoire Naturelle in Paris from 1804 to 1838. He named the red panda (''Ailurus fulgens'') in 1825. The chair of comparative physiology was created for him at the Muséum d'Histoire Naturelle in 1837. He was elected as a foreign member of the Royal Society in 1835. He is mentioned in Charles Darwin's ''On the Origin of Species'' (Chapter VII) as having worked on animal behaviour and instinct, especially the distinction between habit and instinct. He is also mentioned in Herman Melville's ''Moby-Dick'' (Chapter 32) as having written on the topic of whales. Evolution Cuvier has been described as the first scientist to use terms ''"héréditaire"'' (hereditary) in 1807 and "heredity" in 1812 in their now ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Juan Fernández Fur Seal
The Juan Fernández fur seal (''Arctocephalus philippii'') is the second smallest of the fur seals, second only to the Galápagos fur seal. They are found only on the Pacific Coast of South America, more specifically on the Juan Fernández Islands and the Desventuradas Islands. There is still much that is unknown about this species. Scientists still do not know the average life span of this species, or the diet and behavior of males apart from the breeding season. Description The Juan Fernandez fur seal is part of the group of eared seals. Fur seals in general have thick insulating fur that protects the skin from cold water, they have small ear flaps on the side of their head, and they hold their weight on their front flippers which are also used for land locomotion. Fur seals are different from true seals because they have external ear flaps, but also true seals use their chest for support and movement, and fur seals walk on their front flippers. The Juan Fernandez fur seal is ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
