Neophoca
 Australian Sea Lion. Source: Cody Pope |
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Scientific Classification Kingdom: Anamalia (Animals) |
Neophoca is a genus of just one species (a “monotypic” genus) within the eared seal family of sixteen species - the Australian sea lion. Eared seals include sea lions and fur seals. Together with the families of true seals and Walruses, Eared seals form the group of marine mammals known as pinnipeds.
Eared seals differ from the true seals in having small external earflaps and hind flippers that can be turned to face forwards. Together with strong front flippers, this gives them extra mobility on land and an adult fur seal can move extremely fast across the beach if it has to. They also use their front flippers for swimming, whereas true seals use their hind flippers.
Australian sea lions are found on islands offshore of Australia, especially on Kangaroo Island and Dangerous Reef (near Port Lincoln) in southern Australia. The species is considered endangered and is protected.
For details see Australian sea lion.
Further Reading
- Neophoca cinerea (Péron, 1816) Encyclopedia of Life (accessed April 7, 2009)
- Australian Sea Lions, Seal Conservation Society (accessed April 7, 2009)
- The Pinnipeds: Seals, Sea Lions, and Walruses, Marianne Riedman, University of California Press, 1991 ISBN: 0520064984
- Encyclopedia of Marine Mammals, Bernd Wursig, Academic Press, 2002 ISBN: 0125513402
- Marine Mammal Research: Conservation beyond Crisis, edited by John E. Reynolds III, William F. Perrin, Randall R. Reeves, Suzanne Montgomery and Timothy J. Ragen, Johns Hopkins University Press, 2005 ISBN: 0801882559
- Walker's Mammals of the World, Ronald M. Nowak, Johns Hopkins University Press, 1999 ISBN: 0801857899
- Australian Sea Lion, MarineBio.org (accessed April 7, 2009)
