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Aardvark Aardwolf Abert’s Squirrel Addax African Brush-tailed Porcupine African Buffalo African Bush Elephant African Civet African Clawless Otter African Forest Elephant African Leopard African Palm Civet African Pouched Rat (Emin’s Rat) African Striped Weasel African Wild Dog Agile Antechinus Allen's Swamp Monkey Alpine Marmot Amami Rabbit American Badger American Beaver American Bison American Black Bear American Marten American Mink American Pika American Water Shrew Amur Hedgehog Amur Leopard Amur Tiger (Siberian) Anatolian Leopard Andean Cat Angola Colobus Anoa Antarctic Fur Seal Antechinus Aquatic Genet Arabian Leopard Arabian Oryx Arabian Wolf Arctic fox Arctic Ground Squirrel Arctic Hare Arctic Wolf Argentine Grey Fox Asian Golden Cat Asian House Shrew Asian Palm Civet Asiatic Cheetah Asiatic Golden Cat Aurochs Australian Sea Lion Australian Snubfin Dolphin Babirusa or Pig-deer Bactrian camel Bald Uakari Bali Tiger Bamboo rat Banded Mongoose Banded Palm Civet Bandicoot Bangs’s Mountain Squirrel Banteng Barasingha Barbary Lion Barbary Macaque Barbary Sheep Barbastelle Bare-tailed Woolly Opossum Bat-eared Fox Bearded Pig Bearded Seal Beaver Beech Marten Beluga Whale Bengal Tiger Bharal (Himalayan Blue Sheep) Bilby Binturong Bioko Allen's Bushbaby Black Agouti Black Crested Gibbon Black Howler Black Lemur Black Lion Tamarin Black Rat Black Rhinoceros Black Wildebeest (White-tailed Gnu) Black-and-white Ruffed Lemur Black-backed Jackal Black-capped Squirrel Monkey Black-footed Cat Black-footed Ferret Black-footed Gray Langur Black-headed Spider Monkey Black-mantled Tamarin Black-striped Weasel Black-tailed Jackrabbit Black-tufted Marmoset Blackbuck Blesbok Blind mole rat Blue Duiker Blue Monkey Blue Whale Bluebuck (Blue Antelope) Boar Bobak Marmot Bobcat Bohor Reedbuck Bonnet Macaque Bonobo Bontebok Bornean Clouded Leopard Bornean Orangutan Borneo Pygmy Elephant Boto (Amazon River Dolphin or Pink River Dolphin) Botta’s Pocket Gopher Bottlenose Dolphin Bowhead Whale Brazilian Agouti Brazilian Porcupine Broad-faced Potoroo Brocket Deer Brown Antechinus Brown Four-eyed Opossum Brown Greater Galago Brown Hyena Brown Woolly Monkey Brown-throated Three-toed Sloth Brush Rabbit Bryde's Whale Bush Dog Bushbuck Bushpig Cacomistle California Ground Squirrel California Sea Lion Campbell’s Russian Dwarf Hamster Canada Lynx Cape Fox Cape Fur Seal Cape Hyrax (Rock Hyrax) Cape Lion Capybara Caracal Caribbean Monk Seal Cat Cattle Caucasian Squirrel (Persian Squirrel) Celebes Crested Macaque Central American Squirrel Monkey Chacma Baboon Chacoan Peccary Chamois Chinchilla Chinese Ferret Badger Chinese Goral Chinese hamster Chinese Mountain Cat Chinkara Chipmunk Chital Deer Cinereus Shrew Clouded Leopard Collared Peccary Colombian Weasel Colugo Commerson's Dolphin Common Chimpanzee Common dolphin Common Eland Common Genet Common House Mouse Common Kusimanse Common Marmoset Common Opossum Common Palm Civet Common Pipistrelle Common Spotted Cuscus Common Squirrel Monkey Common Treeshrew Coppery Titi Corsac Fox Cottontop Tamarin Coyote Coypu (Nutria) Crab-eating Fox Crab-eating Macaque Crawford's Gray Shrew Crescent Nail-tail Wallaby Crested Porcupine Crowned Lemur Cuban Solenodon Culpeo Dall Sheep Dall's Porpoise Dama Gazelle Daubenton's Bat Daurian Hedgehog De Brazza's Monkey Degu Desert Cottontail Desert Rat-kangaroo Desmarest’s Hutia Dhole Diana Monkey Dingiso Dingo Dog Domestic pig Domestic Sheep Dormouse Douglas Squirrel Drill Dunnart Dusky Dolphin Dwarf Mongoose Eastern Bettong Eastern Chipmunk Eastern Cottontail Eastern Fork-marked Lemur Eastern Gray Squirrel Eastern Lesser Bamboo Lemur Eastern Lowland Gorilla Eastern Spotted Skunk Eastern Timber Wolf Eastern Woolly Lemur Edible dormouse Egyptian Fruit Bat Egyptian Mongoose Egyptian Water Vole Eld’s Deer Emperor Tamarin Ethiopian Wolf Etruscan Shrew Eurasian Badger Eurasian Lynx Eurasian Pygmy Shrew Eurasian Water Shrew European Badger European Beaver European ground squirrel European Hamster European Hare European Mink European Mole European Otter European Polecat European Rabbit European Water Vole Falkland Island Fox Fallow Deer False Killer Whale Fat-tailed Dunnart Feathertail Glider Fennec Fin Whale Fisher Fishing Cat Flying squirrel Fossa Four-horned Antelope Four-toed hedgehog Fox Squirrel Fraser's Dolphin Ganges and Indus River Dolphin Garden dormouse Gaur Gee's Golden Langur Gelada Baboon Gemsbok (Gemsbuck) Geoffroy's Cat Geoffroy's Cat Geoffroy's Spider Monkey Gerbil Gerenuks Ghost Bat Giant Anteater Giant Eland Giant Kangaroo Rat Giant Otter Giant Pangolin Giant Sable Antelope Gilbert's Potoroo Giraffe Goeldi's Marmoset Golden Bamboo Lemur Golden Hamster Golden Jackal Golden Lion Tamarin Golden-bellied Capuchin Golden-headed Lion Tamarin Golden-mantled Ground Squirrel Golden-rumped Elephant Shrew Goodman's Mouse Lemur Gray Bat Gray Fox Gray Goral Gray Mouse Lemur Gray Short-tailed Opossum Gray Whale Gray Wolf Gray-bellied Night Monkey Greater Glider Greater Grison Greater White-toothed Shrew Green Acouchi Grey Rhebok Grey-cheeked Mangabey Grivet Grizzled Giant Squirrel Ground Pangolin Ground sloth Groundhog Guadalupe Fur Seal Guanaco Guinea Baboon Gundis Haig's Tuco-tuco Hairy-fronted muntjac Hamadryas Baboon Hamlyn's Monkey Harbor Porpoise Hartebeest Harvest Mouse Hawaiian Monk Seal Hazel Dormouse Hector's Dolphin Himalayan brown bear Himalayan Tahr Hippopotamus Hirola Hispaniolan Solenodon Hispid Cotton Rat Hoary Bat Hoary Marmot Hoffmann's Two-toed Sloth Hog Badger Hog Deer Honey Badger Hooded Skunk Hoolock Gibbon Horseshoe Bat Horsfield’s Tarsier Hucul (Carpathian Pony) Hugh's Hedgehog Humpback Whale Hutia Hyracotherium Iberian Lynx Impala Indian Elephant Indian Giant Squirrel Indian Hedgehog Indian Long-eared Hedgehog Indian Mongoose Indian muntjac Indian Pangolin Indian Porcupine Indian Rhinoceros Indian Sambar Indian Wolf Indochinese Tiger Island Fox Jaguar Jaguarundi Jamaican Coney Japanese Hare Japanese Macaque Japanese Serow Javan Lutung Jungle Cat Kangaroo Kermode Bear Key Deer Kiang Kinkajou Kirk’s Dik-dik Kit Fox Klipspringer Koala Kob Kodkod Konik Kowari Kri-kri Kultarr L'Hoest's Monkey Laotian rock rat Lar Gibbon Large Spotted Genet Leaf-nosed bat Least Chipmunk Least Weasel Lechwe Leopard Cat Leopard Seal Lesser Grison Lesser Hairy-footed Dunnart Lesser Kudu Lesser White-toothed Shrew Liger Linnaeus's Mouse Opossum Linnaeus's Two-toed Sloth Lion Lion-tailed Macaque Little Swan Island Hutia Long-eared Hedgehog Long-nosed Cusimanse Long-nosed Potoroo Long-tailed Weasel Madras Treeshrew Madras Treeshrew (Indian Treeshrew) Mahogany Glider Malagasy Giant Rat Malbrouck Mandrill Maned wolf Mantled Guereza Mantled Howler Marbled Cat Marbled Polecat Marco Polo Sheep Margay Markhor Marsh Deer Marsh Rice Rat Marsh Shrew Maxwell’s Duiker Mearns Coyote Meerkat Melon-headed Whale Mexican Gray Wolf Minke Whale Miss Waldron's Red Colobus Mona Monkey Mongolian Wild Ass Mongoose Lemur Monk Saki Moose Mouflon Mountain Beaver Mountain Gorilla Mountain Hare Mountain Reedbuck Mouse-like hamster Mule Deer Musk Ox Muskrat (Musquash) Musky Rat-kangaroo Naked Mole Rat Narrow-nosed Planigale Neotropical River Otter New England Cottontail New Zealand Fur Seal New Zealand Sea Lion Nilgai Nilgiri Langur Nilgiri Tahr Nine-banded Armadillo North American Brown Lemming North American Porcupine Northern Elephant Seal Northern Flying Squirrel Northern Fur Seal Northern Pika Northern Plains Gray Langur Northern Pocket Gopher Northern River Otter Northern Short-tailed Shrew Northern Treeshrew Norway Lemming (Norwegian Lemming) Numbat Nutria (Coypu) Nyala Ocelot Olive Baboon Olympic Marmot Onager Oncilla Orca Ord's Kangaroo Rat Oriental Small-clawed Otter Otter Civet Paca Pacific White-sided Dolphin Pale-throated Three-toed Sloth Pallas Cat Pallid bat Pampas Cat Pampas Deer Pampas Fox Pantropical Spotted Dolphin Parma Wallaby Parti-colored Bat (Rearmouse) Patagonian Mara Patas Monkey Père David's Deer Phascogale Philippine Tarsier Pied Tamarin Pig-footed Bandicoot Pilot whale Pine Marten Pink Fairy Armadillo Platypus Polar Bear Possum Prairie dog Prairie dog Preble’s Meadow Jumping Mouse Pudú Puerto Rican Nesophontes Puku Puma Pygmy Hippopotamus Pygmy Hog Pygmy Marmoset Pygmy Mouse Lemur (Peters’ Mouse Lemur) Pygmy Rabbit Pygmy Sperm Whale Pygmy Tarsier Pyrenean Ibex Quagga Quoll Raccoon Raccoon Dog Ratel (Honey Badger) Rüppell's Fox Red Brocket Red Deer Red Fox Red Panda Red River Hog Red Ruffed Lemur Red Slender Loris Red Wolf Red-bellied Lemur Red-bellied Titi Red-handed Tamarin Red-necked Pademelon Red-shanked Douc Red-tailed Sportive Lemur Reeves's Muntjac Reindeer Rhesus Macaque Rhim Gazelle (Slender-horned Gazelle or the Sand Gazelle) Richardson’s Ground Squirrel Right Whale Right whale dolphin Ring-tailed Lemur Ring-tailed Mongoose Ringtail Risso's Dolphin Roan Antelope Roborovski hamster Rock Cavy Rocky Mountain elk Roe Deer Rough-toothed Dolphin Round-tailed Ground Squirrel Rufous Rat-kangaroo Russian Desman Rusty-spotted Cat Sable Sable Antelope Saiga Sand cat Saola Scarlet Kingsnake Scimitar Oryx Scrub Hare Sea Otter Sechuran Fox Sei Whale Senegal Bushbaby Serotine Bat Serval Short-beaked Echidna Shrew-mole Siamang Siberian Chipmunk Siberian Mountain Weasel Siberian musk deer Side-striped Jackal Sika Deer Silky Anteater Silvery Gibbon Silvery Marmoset Sitatunga (Marshbuck) Six-banded Armadillo Slender-tailed Dunnart Sloth Bear Smoky Shrew Smooth-coated Otter Snow leopard Snowshoe Hare Somali Wild Ass South American Fur Seal South American Sea Lion South China Tiger Southern Dibbler Southern Flying Squirrel Southern Short-tailed Shrew Southern Tamandua Southern Three-banded Armadillo Southern White-breasted Hedgehog Southern-East Asian Wolf Sowerby's Beaked Whale Spectral Tarsier Sperm Whale Spinner Dolphin Spiny rat Spotted Hyena Springbok Springhare Squirrel Squirrel Glider Star-nosed Mole Steropodon Stoat Striped Dolphin Striped Hyena Striped Skunk Striped-faced Dunnart Striped-necked Mongoose Stump-tailed Macaque Sugar Glider Sumatran Orangutan Sumatran Rhinoceros Sumatran Striped Rabbit Sumatran Tiger Sun Bear Sunda Flying Lemur (Malayan Flying Lemur) Sunda Loris Sunda Pangolin Swamp Rabbit Swift Fox Taiwan Serow Takin Tarpan Tasmanian Devil Tasmanian Pademelon Tayra Texas Longhorn Thirteen-lined ground squirrel Thorold’s Deer Three-striped Night Monkey Thylacine Tibetan Blue Bear Tibetan Macaque Tiger Quoll Topi Toque Macaque Tufted Capuchin Tundra Vole Uinta Ground Squirrel Urial Vagrant Shrew Venezuelan Red Howler Verreaux’s Sifaka Vervet Monkey Vicuña Virginia Opossum Visayan Warty Pig Vole Wallaby Walrus Warthog Water Buffalo Water Deer Water Opossum (Yapok) Water Rat (Native Water Rat or Rakali) Waterbuck West Caucasian Tur West European Hedgehog West Indian Manatee Western Bongo Western Gorilla Western Gray Squirrel Western Hog-nosed Skunk Western Hog-nosed Skunk (Common Hog-nosed Skunk) Western Long-beaked Echidna Western Lowland Gorilla Western Spotted Skunk Whiskered Bats White-eared Opossum White-eared Titi White-faced Saki White-footed Dunnart White-footed Rabbit-rat White-headed Capuchin White-headed Marmoset White-lipped Tamarin White-tailed Deer White-tailed Jackrabbit Wild cat Wild Goat Winter White Russian Dwarf hamster Wisent Wolf's Mona Monkey Wolverine Wombat Woylie Yak Yellow Baboon Yellow Mongoose Yellow-backed Duiker Yellow-bellied Marmot Yellow-footed Antechinus Yellow-necked Mouse Yellow-throated Marten Zanzibar Red Colobus Zebra Zebu Zeren (Mongolian Gazelle)

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Antarctic Fur Seal


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The Antarctic fur seal (Arctocephalus gazella) is one of seven seals in the genus Arctocephalus. As its name suggests, the Antarctic Fur Seal is distributed in Antarctic waters. Around 95% of the world population breeds at South Georgia. It is named for the German naval vessel the SMS Gazelle that collected the first specimen from Kerguelen Island. The species is also known as the Kerguelen Fur Seal.

Physical description

This fur seal has a short and broad snout compared with others in the family. Adult males are dark brown in color. Females and juveniles tend to be grey with a lighter underside. Color patterns are highly variable, and some scientists believe that some hybridization with sub Antarctic fur seals has occurred. Pups are dark brown, nearly black at birth. About one in 1000 Antarctic fur seals are pale 'blonde' variants.

Males are substantially larger than females. The males are 6.56 ft (2 m) long and they weigh about 440.92 lb (200 kg). The females are 4.43 ft (1.35 m) long and they weigh about 88.18 lb (40 kg). Males live for about 15 years and females up to 25.

Antarctic fur seals appear to act alone when foraging and migrating. A strong male may have more than a dozen female partners in a single season. Territories are established on breeding grounds in October to early November, when the musty-smelling males are extremely aggressive in defense of their harems. Females gestate for just over a year and give birth in November or December. Pups are weaned at about a month old. Juveniles may then spend several years in the water before returning to begin their breeding cycle.

The usual food supply is krill, and each Antarctic fur seal eats about a ton of krill each year. Due to the enormous and growing populations of these seals, their food is a significant proportion of South Georgia's krill stocks.

Range and population

The Antarctic fur seal breeds in summer on island's ranging from South Georgia at 70° W round to about 80° E (Kerguelen Islands). Additionally there is a breeding ground at Macquarie Island. All of these islands are between 45° S and 60° S. The animal's winter range is not known. During these long dark months, the seal spends its time almost surely close to the Antarctic ice.

A population count is due in 2007 or 2008, and estimates can only be very rough until this is carried out. Best guesses suggest there may be two to four million individuals breeding at South Georgia and 15,000 at Heard Island. The concentrations at South Georgia are the densest aggregations of marine mammals on earth. Some people believe these populations have grown to such levels because the removal of whales by the intensive whaling of the 20th century left a surplus of krill. Other islands in Antarctic waters may have a few hundred to a thousand such seals.

Human interaction

The Antarctic fur seal was very heavily hunted in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries for its pelt by sealers from the United States and the United Kingdom. By the early twentieth century, the seal was regarded as commercially extinct, and perhaps completely extinct. In fact a small population continued to exist, breeding on Bird Island in South Georgia. This colony has expanded rapidly over the course of a century. The current populations on the other Antarctic islands are believed to be offshoots of this one colony.

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