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Two expeditions were mounted this summer to determine
the diets of the eastern stock of Steller sea lions.
The first was done in collaboration with the Alaska
Department of Fish and Game in Southeast Alaska and
Northern British Columbia. The second was in southern
British Columbia. Approximately 500 scats from British
Columbia and 700 from southeast Alaska were put into
plastic bags and placed in the deep freeze to cool down.
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Scat Collection Points:
These maps indicate rookeries and haulouts where scat was
collected in the summer of 2001.
These are collection points only, there are many other locations
where Steller sea lions are commonly seen.
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Dr. Andrew Trites is the principal investigator of the
diet study that is designed to determine why the growing
eastern population of sea lions is doing so well compared
to the endangered populations living in the Gulf of
Alaska and Aleutian Islands. The leading theory is that
the growing populations are consuming a healthier mix
of different species of prey compared to the declining
populations that have been eating primarily pollock
and Atka mackerel. |
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Once all of the scats have been cleaned, the bones
and other hard parts that are found will be identified
to determine what the sea lions ate. This summer marks
the most extensive collection of scats ever collected
for Steller sea lions and will help us to understand
the role that diet is playing in the decline of Steller
sea lions.
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13 November 2001
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