Japanese Sea Lion
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| iJapanese Sea Lion | ||||||||||||||||
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| Zalophus japonicus (Peters, 1866) |
The Japanese Sea Lion (Zalophus japonicus or Zalophus californianus japonicus) is thought to have gone extinct in the 1950s. Little is known about them. They were found in marine and coastal areas in the Sea of Japan. They bred in flat, open and sandy beaches and sometimes in rocky areas.
There are various causes for the Japanese Sea Lion's extinction. It was captured for the circus trade, its skin was used for oil, its internal organs were valuable in the making of oriental medicine, and its whiskers were used as pipe cleaners. Many were killed by fishermen, however, its final extinction was probably caused by habitat destruction due to the armed fortification by the South Korean guards of the formerly uninhabited Dokdo from 1954, its last known habitat.
Many taxonomists do not consider the Japanese Sea Lion a separate species but rather a subspecies of the California Sea Lion.
[edit] References
- Seal Specialist Group (1996). Zalophus japonicus. 2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. IUCN 2006. Retrieved on 11 May 2006. Database entry includes justification for why this species is listed as extinct
