Male California Sea Lions grow to a whopping 2.4m (8ft) long and weigh 330kg (52st). At just 2m (7ft) long and 90kg (14st) in weight, females are considerably smaller.
Clumsy on land, but changing to graceful acrobats once in the ocean, a sea lion in the water is a magnificent sight. Their effortless twists, turns and “porpoising” through the water easily shows why a sea lion is such a good underwater hunter. Eating mainly fish and squid, sea lions can propel their body through the water at high speed to catch their prey. They don’t even need to be in clear water to catch a fish. Sea lions can find food by picking up the tiniest of vibrations on the whiskers of their upper jaw.
Found on the pacific coastline of the USA and Mexico, there is an estimated 240,000 sea lions around their shores.
Caring parents, a California Sea Lion gives birth to a single infant known as a ‘pup’. Once born, she will continue to feed her offspring for six months during which time the infant will have learned how to swim and to live within a sea lion community. More importantly, a young pup will also be taught on how to avoid a sea lion’s greatest enemies - such as sharks and killer whales.
