Zalophus Californianus
California Sea Lion
Classification
- Domain Eukarya: This domain includes specimens that are heterotrophs, which means that they eat other Eukaryotes for energy, and they can be single celled or multicellular
- Kingdom Anamalia: All members of Animalia are multicellular, and all are heterotrophs.Animal cells lack the rigid cell walls that characterize plant cells.
- Phylum Chordata: All specimens in the Phylum chordata have bilateral symmetry, a segmented body with segmented uscles, a dorsal and ventral heart and blood vessels and a complete digestive system.
- Subphylum Vertebrata: All specimens in the subphlum Vertebrata include fishes, amphibians, birds and mammals. All share a spine, or vertebra, that runs down the specimen's back.
- Class Mammalia: All animals in the Class Mamalia have 3 middle ear bones, hair, and sweat glands, formally called mammary glands, that produce a modified milk.
- Order Carnivora: Most members of the order Canivora have large upper and lower teeth which form an efficent shear for eating prey. Theese teeth are formally called the carnissal pair.
- Family Otariidae: All specimens in the family Otariids have fur, sea lions have relitively coarse hairs, while fur seals haave dense underfur. Color is a shade of borwn, with no stripes or markings.nThe flippers are paddle-like, around 1/4 of the lenght of the body.
- Genus Zalophus: California Sea Lion
- Species Californianus: California Sea Lion
California Sea Lion Natural Range
Fastest Sea Lions
Height of Sea Lion
Physical Description
Weight: Newborn Sea Lions are about 5 kg. Male adults are around 275 kg - 380 kg, and female adults are around 91 kg.
Color: Adult Sea Lions are brown with lighter stomaches and side coloring, females are brown but also can be tan.
Natural Range: Sea Lions usually are found from California to Mexico including other places such as the southern Sea of Japan. Male Sea Lions usually migrate to British Columbia after the breeding season.
Diet: Sea Lions usually eat cephalopods, anchovies, herring, Pacific whiting, rockfish, hake, salmon, squid and octopuses
Habitat Description: Sea Lions live mostly along the coastlines, but havebeen found in rivers near the Pacific coast. Sea Lions also tend to rest on man-made structures, such as, jetties, piers, offshorebuoys and oil platforms.
Predators: Known predators of the California Sea Lion include great white sharks, bull sharks, and killer whales.
Behavorial Adaptations
Physical Adaptations
References
.Aurioles, D. & Trillmich, F. (IUCN SSC Pinniped Specialist Group) 2008. Zalophus californianus. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2014.3. <www.iucnredlist.org>. Downloaded on 20 March 2015.
Burton, M. (2002). Sea lion. In International wildlife encyclopedia (3rd ed., Vol. 16, pp. 2282-2284). New York, NY: Marshall Cavendish.
California sea lion. (n.d.). Retrieved March 18, 2015, from Chicago Zoological Society’s Brookfield Zoo website: http://www.czs.org/Brookfield-ZOO/Zoo-Animals/Pinniped-Point/California-Sea-Lion
California sea lion. (n.d.). Retrieved March 18, 2015, from National Geographic website: http://animals.nationalgeographic.com/animals/mammals/california-sea-lion/?source=A-to-Z
Price, R. 2002. “Zalophus californianus” (On-line), Animal Diversity Web. Accessed March 11, 2015 at http://animaldiversity.org/accounts/Zalophus_californianus/