California sea lion
From CreationWiki, the encyclopedia of creation science
| California sea lion |
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| Scientific Classification |
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| Binomial name |
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Zalophus califonianus |
| Image Description |
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California sea lion is a large predatory seal that lives in the Northern Pacific Ocean. There are about 200,000 California sea lions living in waters from British Columbia to northern Mexico. They are abundant today, living in large colonies ranging in the thousands. They are considered quite intelligent, adapt rapidly to man-made habits, and are easy to train. Some have trained California sea lions to perform tricks in circuses such as catching balls or clapping with their flappers.[1]
They were once found in few islands in Japan, but unfortunately, most researchers believe they are all went extinct during the World War II. Some believe some individuals still live in Dokdo Island (claimed by South Korea right now) [2]
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Anatomy
They have different size and weights because of the difference between the males and females. Usually males have darker skins and bigger sizes than females. The size of the male is 6.5 to 8.0 feet long, and weighs about 441 to 882 pounds. The size of the female is 5 to 6.5 feet and weighs about 110 to 243 pounds. [3] Their life span is about 15 to 25 years. Their body shape is torpedo shaped so it makes it to swim faster in the water. They also have four flappers rather than legs, that helps to swim fast in the water.(They can swim up to 25 mph) They are quite fast on land using their flappers as legs. They have a thick layer of blubber (fat) and thick fur which keep their body temperatures when it is in cold water and they can store the fat and they can use when they really need foods. Males also have a thick and furry mane around their neck. They have vibrissae, usually called whiskers, on their mouth which helps the sea lion’s sense of touch. They have nostrils to breathe and they are able to close their nostril. Sea lion has a pair of external ears to hear, and it also has sharp eyesight but it doesn’t have a color vision. [4]
Reproduction
The male stay in the territory about 20 to 30 days after gave them birth. The female begins their copulation by acting submissive postures in front of the males. The copulation begins on the land, but sometimes, they do in the shallow and deep water also. The male meet 16 females in average in one season and the female bear one offspring in one season [5] Female's gestation, the time that females carrying embryos, lasts about 50 weeks and lactation, production of milk by female mammals, lasts about half an year to an year.[6] When they hatch young babies, their size is so small;their size are about 30 inches and they weigh about 20 pounds.[7]
Ecology
The California sea lions usually live in the water. When they come out from the water, they usually stay on shoreline. They live in the warm weather. They live in the British Columbia to Northern Mexico. they don't migrate to other land because the weather where they live is warm every day.
They are carnivorous, which means that they consume other animals as food. They usually eat fish, squid, octopi, crabs, and lobsters. Interesting thing about these animals is that they don’t chew their food; they just swallow the whole chunk of it. When they eat crustaceans and mollusks, they crush the hard shells with their back teeth. [8] They are very powerful animals, but they have predators such as the killer whales and the white sharks. When they attacked and got trouble from the predators, they can swim fast to get out of predators or they go up to the land while the predators in the water. [9]
Hybrids
The hybrid was reported in 2002 issue of the Journal of Mammology between California sea lion and south American sea lion. [10]
Gallery
 Adult male California sea lions (Zalophus californianus) are around 200 to 250 cm in length and can weigh 200 to 300 kg. |
 A sea lion shares his intimate knowledge of the ocean with researchers via an electronic tag. |
 Sea lions have strong front flippers that they can use to walk on. They are also capable of using their hind flippers for walking. |
 California sea lion showing its close encounter with a white shark. |
 Young baby of the california sea lion |
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References
- Marine Mammal Information Unknown author, The Marine Mammal center, Copyright 2008 .
- California Sea lion's habitat & distribution Sea World Adventure Parks, Sea World Adventure Parks, No Copyright date.
- Scienstific classifications of California sea lion many authors, Sea World Adventure Parks, No Copyright date.
- Enchanted Learning California Sea Lion many authors, Enchanted Learning , copyright 2008.
- California Sea lion's Reproduction Sea World Adventure Parks, Sea World Adventure Parks, No Copyright date.
- California Sea lion Jaap van der Toorn, compuserve.com, Lastly modified in Thursday September 24th, 1999.
- California sea lion's Birth & Care of Young Sea World Adventure Parks, Sea World Adventure Parks, No Copyright date.
- Sea lion hybrid Many authors, Wikipedia
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