NZ sea lion monitoring at the Auckland Islands 2008/09

Published:  

Revised report published November 2009
This report describes the results of ongoing population monitoring of New Zealand sea lions at the Auckland islands. This is the final report for the 2008/09 year.

Summary

The period covered in this report is from 2 December 2008 when the first team arrived on Enderby Island through to the departure of the second team from the Island on 16 February 2009.

This work continues annual surveys of the Auckland Island breeding sites of the New Zealand sea lions (Phocarctos hookeri). The project’s objectives were to collect data to allow quantification and estimation of:

i) NZ sea lion pup production;
ii) survival of previously marked NZ sea lions;
iii) reproduction by known age female NZ sea lions;
iv) tag pups produced during the 2008/09 breeding season;
v) maintain and update the NZ sea lion database;
vi) to characterise at-sea distribution of poorly known age and sex classes of NZ sea lions and;
vii) Analyse at-sea distribution data in a fisheries context. 

Supplementary report

The aim was to analyse data collected on the at-sea distribution of poorly known age and
sex classes of NZ sea lions in a fisheries context.

Analyses of the overlap between 2008 juvenile NZ sea lions satellite locations and 2008
Auckland Island fishing activities are shown in Figure 1.

Publication information

Prepared by Dr. Louise Chilvers, Department of Conservation

Contact

Conservation Services Programme
Department of Conservation
PO Box 10-420
Wellington 6143

Email: csp@doc.govt.nz

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