Current status of the California sea lion ( Zalophus californianus) and the northern elephant seal (Mirounga angustirostris) at the San Benito Archipelago, Mexico
The California sea lion (CSL) and the north ern elephant seal (NES) ar e the two most abundant pinni ped species inhabiting the S an Benito Archipelago (Baja Californ ia, Mexico). This study reports the results of the first survey to gather abundance informatio n from continuous breeding seasons (20...
| Authors: | , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | article |
| Status: | Published version |
| Publication Date: | 2015 |
| Country: | México |
| Institution: | Instituto Politécnico Nacional |
| Repository: | Redalyc-IPN |
| OAI Identifier: | oai:redalyc.org:48043157002 |
| Online Access: | https://www.redalyc.org/articulo.oa?id=48043157002 |
| Access Level: | Open access |
| Keyword: | Ciencias de la Tierra abundance Baja Cali fornia California sea lions San Benito Archipel ago northern ele phant seals |
| Summary: | The California sea lion (CSL) and the north ern elephant seal (NES) ar e the two most abundant pinni ped species inhabiting the S an Benito Archipelago (Baja Californ ia, Mexico). This study reports the results of the first survey to gather abundance informatio n from continuous breeding seasons (2012–2015) and over the course of a single year (2014). Rela tive to the previous year, the abundan ce of CSLs declined in July 2014; however, based on historical censuses, the colony at th e archipelago was catalogue d as “stable”. Intra-a nnually, the CSL abundance was regulated by pups and adult females, which re ached their peak during the breedi ng season (July). Moreover, we hyp othesize that subadult males from the west coast of Baja California enter the Gulf of California. The NES fluctuations were most affected by the breeding season (February), when the number of pups and adult females peaked, and by the important presence of juveniles in May and Sept ember. The NES colony at the archipelago wa s catalogued as “in decline”, ba sed on previous countings. This high-resolution survey compleme nts past and future studies in the region, and adds a nother dimension to our understanding of th ese species, which is largely based on infor mation from their main rookeries in California. |
|---|