California Sea Lion (Arctocephalus forsteri)

California sea lion (Zalophus californianus)

About California Sea Lion (Arctocephalus forsteri)

Kingdom: Animals
Phylum: Chordates
Class: Mammals
Order: Carnivorans
Family: Otariidae

The California Sea Lion occurs in the eastern North Pacific from Islas Tres Marias north of Puerto Vallarta, north throughout the Gulf of California and around the end of the Baja California Peninsula north to the Gulf of Alaska. Sightings of vagrants have been reported from the southern Bering Sea in the north (Maniscalco et al., 2004) to Chiapas Mexico in the south. Females, which were only very rarely found north of Point Conception in the early 1980s, are now routinely found in northern California, where former breeding sites have been reoccupied.

Large numbers of adult and subadult males and juveniles undertake a post-breeding season migration north from the major rookeries in southern California and Baja California and winter from central California to Washington State. Smaller numbers of animals migrate to British Columbia and southeast Alaska, making it to the northern Gulf of Alaska, Alaska Peninsula, and eastern Aleutian Islands. Other animals appear to remain in the Gulf of California year round and do not undertake long migrations.
International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources

Lifelists

Trips

Visits

2001-11-20

Rosalia Beach, Mexico
2006-05-31

San Francisco - Pier 39, United States of America
2006-06-03

Farallones Marine Sanctuary, United States of America
2006-10-08

Marin Headlands, United States of America

Seen eating a salmon under the bridge.
2007-09-23

Monterey Bay, United States of America
2008-01-17

Giants Park, United States of America
2008-02-24

Cabo Pulmo, Mexico
2012-09-22

East Wash, United States of America
2013-08-18

Farallones Marine Sanctuary, United States of America
2014-03-11

Elkhorn Slough, United States of America
2014-04-06

Delta Meadows State Park, United States of America
2014-08-23

MacKerricher SP, United States of America
2014-12-21

Arrowhead Marsh, United States of America
2015-02-21

Half Moon Bay - Pillar Point, United States of America
2015-08-23

Farallones Marine Sanctuary, United States of America
2019-06-28

Valparaiso, Chile
2021-01-30

Tomales Bay State Park, United States of America
2021-04-04

Elkhorn Slough, United States of America
2023-10-21

Farallones Marine Sanctuary, United States of America