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Newest additions to the Steller Research Team!
 Five
Steller sea lion pups recently joined eight senior sea lions
housed at the Vancouver
Aquarium Marine Science Centre.
They are all females and have been named Willoughby, Izigan (Izzy),
Rogue, Mara, and Ashby after sea lion rookeries and haulouts.The
pups came from the Scott Islands BC, and were raised on a thick
fish milkshake until September when they were weaned onto fish.
The pups are participating in studies of physiology, nutrition,
energetics, and the development and testing of new techniques that
can be used to study sea lions in the wild. The ultimate goal of
the research is to aid in the recovery of Steller sea lions in
western Alaska by understanding what caused their decline.
The pups are proving to be quick learners and are receiving intensive
training and are already participating in scientific studies. But
it is not all work—with lots of time devoted to sea lion
play (with both each other and staff) and those important first
swimming lessons!
24 October 2003
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