Newsletter n°14 - April 2016

PINK NOTEBOOK

New-Zealand fur seal, also called “kekeno” in Maori language

The New-Zealand fur seuls (Arctocephalus forsteri) leave in Indian Ocean, near the rocky coastlines of New-Zealand and South of Australia. The species is not considered as threatened. Males are practically twice bigger than females. Females reach sexual maturity betwenn 4 to 6 years and males betwen 8 and 10 years. Each is at the head of a harem of some females.
The breeding season for the New Zealand fur seal starts in late October and ends by early February. The male will not eat for two to three months of breeding season.

The pups are born between late November and mid-January, with an average length of 40 to 55 cm. These pups are precocial, and can start suckling within 60 minutes. At 9 to 10 months of age the pups are weaned.

For the femelles the longest recorded dive lasted 9.3 minutes and the deepest recorded dive reached 312 m deep ; for the males the longest recorded dive lasted 14.8 minutes and the deepest recorded dive reached 380 m. A word to the wise is enough!

“Yesterday is behind, tomorrow is mystery, and today is a giftt, that is why we call it the present.”