South American sea lions (Otaria flavescens) and killer whales (Orcinus orca) attending chub mackerel (Scomber japonicus) commercial trawl fisheries over the Patagonian Shelf: a first report

Authors

  • Juan Pablo Seco Pon Grupo Vertebrados. Instituto de Investigaciones Marinas y Costeras (IIMyC), Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata – Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET)
  • Marco Favero Grupo Vertebrados. Instituto de Investigaciones Marinas y Costeras (IIMyC), Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata – Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET)

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.5597/lajam00193

Keywords:

South American sea lion, killer whale, harassment, novel reaction

Abstract

Killer whale-seal interactions have been reported for almost all pinniped species globally. However the literature on offshore interactions between killer whales and sea lions is rare for the South Atlantic, particularly in Argentine waters. Here we report for the first time the harassment of a South American sea lion (Otaria flavescens) by killer whales (Ornicus orca) while attending commercial fishing vessels in offshore national waters and describe a novel sea lion antipredator behaviour. These observations were made during an ongoing survey to assess seabird-fisheries interactions in the commercial trawl fishery off Argentina.

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Published

2015-08-24

How to Cite

Seco Pon, J. P., & Favero, M. (2015). South American sea lions (Otaria flavescens) and killer whales (Orcinus orca) attending chub mackerel (Scomber japonicus) commercial trawl fisheries over the Patagonian Shelf: a first report. Latin American Journal of Aquatic Mammals, 10(1), 48-51. https://doi.org/10.5597/lajam00193

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