Meet the sea lions helping to map the sea floor

Meet the sea lions helping to map the sea floor

IMAGE SOURCE,GETTY IMAGES

• Published

  7 August 2024

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Meet the latest cartographers mapping out the ocean floor - a raft of sea lions!

Scientists enrolled eight females from two seal colonies in Australia to wear a camera so they could film where they go under the water.

They recorded nearly 90 hours of footage revealing six habitats on the ocean floor in southern Australia.

Researchers say it's vital to map habitats for endangered species like the Australian sea lion so they can understand how best to help conservation efforts.

IMAGE SOURCE,GETTY IMAGES

Over the past 40 years, Australian sea lion numbers have fallen by 60% and in 2021 they were classed as an endangered species.

Over 100-years-ago sea lions were hunted for their fur and oil but now they face threats from modern-day living such as climate change and commercial fishing.

There are only around 10,000 left in the wild across around 80 breeding sites along the south and west coastline of Australia.

They are Australia's only seal species native to the island.

IMAGE SOURCE,GETTY IMAGES

Scientists from The University of Adelaide and the South Australian Research and Development Institute (SARDI) strapped lightweight cameras with satellite tracking to eight female sea lions, providing an insight into their world that has never been seen before.

They picked female sea lions as they come back to shore to nurse their pups.

Nathan Angelakis from The University of Adelaide and the South Australian Research and Development Institute said:

“This data is useful both for mapping critical habitats for an endangered species such as the Australian sea lion, and more broadly, for mapping unexplored areas of the seabed.”

https://www.bbc.co.uk/newsround/articles/c33nv768xz2o