Translation 2783

1C)6
The range of the.Galapagos sea.lion is restricted to the
Galapaè;os Islands.' ' •
Purin.; the breeding priod sea lions form dense rookeries,
consisting of 'separate harems, on rocky islands. There are usually
up to 20 females in each harem. Parturition ta:.çes place mostly in
Hay and June, but in th. Calapagos population it takes place in October
and Povember. Usually a :Angle pup in born. The duration of
the lactation period ha u not boon precisely determined. ;ome investigators
believe that the females suckle •heir young for five or six •
months. The pup.:: stay on shore for ten or fifteen days, and then
gradually learn to swim.
The adults mate soon after the pups are born. It is believed
that the mating period lasts much longer in the Californian sea lion .
tan in other related species. Gestation lasts for about a year.
The times of attainment of sexual maturity by males and females have
not been precisely determined. The breakdown of the rookeries takes
place in autumn, when the animals have completed . their moult; they
then spend a coniderable part of their time in the water, where
they feed intensively.
The principal food items of Californian sea lions are'fishes
and cephalopods. The composition of the diet varies with tue region
in which a population lives. In the northern part of the Pacific
Ocean the stomachs of sea , lions contain herring, rockjish, and hake.
The animals alLo eat salmon, and do some damage to fishing-nets.
- - Sea lions' duration of life is 30 years. Their most dangerous -
natural enemies are killer whales and sharks. Sea lions are often
found with lesions in the àdrta and with ulcers in the stomach and
intestines. The internal organs are infested by various species of
helminths: 18 helminthic species have been recorded, includinc seven
species of nematodes and nix species of trematddes.
Sea lions have no economic value. The total number of Californian
sea lions may be estimated at from 00,000 to 100,000. The -
California population is the mor.t numerous, with more than 50,000;
more than •20,000 1j.ve in the calapat;os Islands, and Lhe Japanese ,
population censintS of a fow-hundreds.