Antarctic Fur Seal (Arctocephalus gazella) 6 March 2018. Grytviken, South Georgia and South Sandwich Islands, GS




Antarctic Fur Seal (Arctocephalus gazella)
A tiny fraction of fur seal pups (reportedly one in 10,000) were white as seen here. Many pups came up to greet us, sometimes friendly, sometimes growling and seeming to want to play dominance games. This species was thought to have been hunted to extinction by the early 20th century. However remnant populations of a few hundred individuals survived on Bird Island, South Georgia and a few other small islands. The current world population estimated at about three million animals is apparently descended from those few survivors. South Georgia is home to about 95% of the world's Antarctic Fur Seals and has the densest marine mammal population on earth. Canon PowerShot SX50 HS

Reference:

Hofmeyr, G.J.G. 2016. Arctocephalus gazella. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2016: e.T2058A66993062. http://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-1.RLTS.T2058A66993062.en. Downloaded on 03 June 2018.
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