Eared Seal - Species

Species

Family Otariidae

  • Subfamily Arctocephalinae (fur seals)
    • Genus Arctocephalus
      • Antarctic fur seal, A. gazella
      • Guadalupe fur seal, A. townsendi
      • Juan Fernández fur seal, A. philippii
      • Galápagos fur seal, A. galapagoensis
      • Brown fur seal, A. pusillus
        • South African fur seal, A. pusillus pusillus
        • Australian fur seal, A. pusillus doriferus
      • New Zealand fur seal (or Southern fur seal), A. forsteri
      • Subantarctic fur seal, A. tropicalis
      • South American fur seal, A. australis
    • Genus Callorhinus
      • Northern fur seal, C. ursinus
  • Subfamily Otariinae (sea lions)
    • Genus Eumetopias
      • Steller sea lion, E. jubatus
    • Genus Neophoca
      • Australian sea lion, N. cinerea
    • Genus Otaria
      • South American sea lion, O. flavescens
    • Genus Phocarctos
      • New Zealand sea lion (or Hooker's sea lion), P. hookeri
    • Genus Zalophus
      • California sea lion, Z. californianus
      • †Japanese sea lion, Z. japonicus - extinct (1950s)
      • Galápagos sea lion, Z. wollebaeki

Although the two subfamilies of otariids, the Otariinae (sea lions) and Arctocephalinae (fur seals) are still widely used, recent molecular studies have demonstrated they may be invalid. Instead, they suggest three clades within the family, one consisting of the northern sea lions (Eumetopias and Zalophus), one of the northern fur seal and its extinct relatives (Callorhinus), and the third of all the remaining, Southern Hemisphere, species.


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