Guadalupe fur seal
Guadalupe fur seal (Arctocephalus townsendi )
The Guadalupe fur seal (Arctocephalus townsendi ) is the rarest type of Southern Fur Seals.
Features
Males reach a length of 2 m, females are 1.4 m long. The weight is 140 and 50 kg. In appearance these fur seals are similar to the other members of their species.
Dissemination
The largest colonies of seals are located on the belonging to Mexico Guadalupe Island (in Baja California ). It is estimated that there have been earlier colonies of this type on numerous islands off the west coast of North America. Since 1995 is a gradual spread to other islands instead. So there is a small, growing colony on the San Benito Islands, which lie closer to the coast of Baja California. 1997 was also a breeding season rather than belonging to the Channel Islands, San Miguel Island.
Stock development
The colony on Guadalupe originally consisted of more than 100,000 seals; In the 19th century, the fur seals were killed en masse for their fur. After 1894 killed the last seals, explained to the nature of extinct; Today it is believed that sea dogs survived unnoticed in the caves along the coast in the following years. Anyway, two fur seals were again caught by fishermen in 1928 and given to the San Diego Zoo; then it took until 1949 until we were found a wild fur seals, and from 1954 there was again a colony on Guadalupe. The Guadalupe fur seal is now strictly protected by Mexican law, and the island of Guadalupe is a seal sanctuary. So could the colony grow back to 7000 fur seals. Outside the breeding season, one finds Guadalupe fur seals itself on the California Channel Islands, where they mingle with the Northern fur seals.
Threats and conservation
The Guadalupe fur seal is listed in the Red List of endangered species by the World Conservation Union IUCN as Near Threatened ( Near Threatened ).
About the CITES CITES trade is prohibited with this type according to Appendix I as directly endangered species.
The European Union is the Guadalupe fur seal with the EU Wildlife Trade Regulation 338/97, Appendix A to the world's survival at risk by trading types. It assumes the diction of CITES and is the type with a trade ban. In addition, this EU regulation has a direct impact on all EU Member States.
The Federal Republic of Germany has in the Federal Nature Conservation Act the Guadalupe fur seal as a strictly protected from.