Sea lions ... How are they different from other seals?

According to the scientific classification, sea lions belong to the family of Eared Seals. But in their appearance and way of life, they are significantly different from their closest relatives. That is, from elephant seals and seals. Who are they - these predatory mammals? And what does the inhabitant of the ocean have in common with the large felines that are found in savannahs? The answer to this question is quite simple: in mature males the wool on the collar is longer than on the rest of the trunk, which causes a distant resemblance to the mane of an African predator. There is an opinion that sea lions live only in the Southern Hemisphere. There they are three species - on the habitat: Australian, New Zealand and southern, found off the coast of Africa and Latin America. But to the north of the equator such animals are also common. This is a Californian lion and a sea lion. And if the first species differs little from its southern counterparts (since it lives in the subtropics and it does not need to store the stores of subcutaneous fat), the Steller's sea lion occupied a vital niche in the rather high latitudes of the Northern Hemisphere. He lives in Russia on the Kuril Islands, the Sea of Okhotsk, Kamchatka, Sakhalin. Also it can be found on the Commander Islands and the Aleutian Islands, Alaska and the coast of North America up to California.

Sea lions, unlike other seals, are surprisingly graceful creatures. Even on land, they are quite active and deftly moving, and in the water and do show the wonders of circus acrobatics. Their skin is brown, with rather short fur. This unattractive coat and meager fat reserves saved the sight of sea lions from being exterminated by humans. Hunting them is not as profitable as seals and other seals, although in Japan the endemic species of these animals was completely destroyed. The streamlined body, strong fins, flattened small head with small, slightly convex beautiful eyes allow the lion to dive to a depth of up to 90 meters and chase the schools of fish at high speed.

These animals can spend days on the open sea. However, sea lions do not like long migrations. We can say that these are sedentary animals that do not leave their beach for more than 25 km. They hunt for fish, crustaceans, mollusks. In turn, sea lions become prey to killer whales and white sharks. They live in colonies, but not as numerous as other eared seals. Their males are also more peaceful - all fights over the harem are conducted, as a rule, "up to the first blood". Female are aggressive only in the first days after birth. The young ones have golden fur and feed on mother's milk for up to six months. Female individuals become sexually mature for the third year of life, and males - for the fifth year. But only at the age of seven the lion cub acquires a mane and can defend his harem. The sea lion (his photo is here) is much larger than his elegant girlfriend: 300 kilograms of live weight against some 90 kg of lady.

These animals have extremely developed mental activity. They are clever, inventive, perfectly tamed and well suited for training. This, as well as innate agility and grace, make them permanent actors in aquariums and dolphinariums. Therefore, most of us from childhood know what a sea lion looks like. And in conditions of free life, flocks of these seals escape from their natural enemies - sharks and killer whales - by keeping closer to people, settling piers, ports and even navigational buoys.