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New Zealand Sea Lion 08.JPG
WHAT’S KILLING THE SEA-LIONS?
New Zealand sea-lion numbers have plummeted. Is it fishing pressure, climate change, the mysterious disappearance of octopuses, or a deadly new virus?
Young New Zealand sea-lion pups in a ‘puppy pile’ at Sandy Bay on Enderby Island. In coming weeks the mothers will teach these pups to swim and will also begin to spread away from the beach into the surrounding meadow and forest as the males depart the beach. Enderby Island was once infested with rabbits and in former times many pups suffocated after crawling into rabbit holes. Adults spend much of their time at sea, so counting pups is the only reliable way for researchers to get an idea of population trends, although it remains an imperfect science.
Shot on assignment for New Zealand Geographic Issue138 March – April 2016.
Photograph Richard Robinson © 2016
New Zealand sea-lion numbers have plummeted. Is it fishing pressure, climate change, the mysterious disappearance of octopuses, or a deadly new virus?
Young New Zealand sea-lion pups in a ‘puppy pile’ at Sandy Bay on Enderby Island. In coming weeks the mothers will teach these pups to swim and will also begin to spread away from the beach into the surrounding meadow and forest as the males depart the beach. Enderby Island was once infested with rabbits and in former times many pups suffocated after crawling into rabbit holes. Adults spend much of their time at sea, so counting pups is the only reliable way for researchers to get an idea of population trends, although it remains an imperfect science.
Shot on assignment for New Zealand Geographic Issue138 March – April 2016.
Photograph Richard Robinson © 2016
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- Richard Robinson © 2016 No Reproduction without prior written permission.
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