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Fish diet of the Antarctic fur seal,Arctocephalus gazella, in summer, at Stranger Point, King George Island, South Shetland Islands

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Abstract

In February 1992, 34 faecal samples from non-treeding male Antarctic fur seals,Arctocephalus gazella, were collected at Stranger Point, King George Island., South Shetlands. Fish constituted an important part of the diet, occurring in 90% of those scats containing prey remains. From 1162 otoliths found in the faeces. 1086 were identified to at least family level. Myctophids and nototheniids represented together almost 90% of the fish eaten. The dominant species wereGymnoscopelus nicholsi, Pleuragramma antarcticum andElectrona antarctica, contributing 33.3%,30.8% and 12.0% of the otoliths respectively. The standard length of these three species was estimated from otoliths with little or no signs of erosion. This study showed that fur seals fed mainly on pelagic fish species that are often associated with krill. These findings are corroborated by fur seal diving patterns.

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  1. División Mastozoología, Museo Argentine de Ciencias Naturales, “Bernardino Rivadavia” (MACNBR), Av Angel Gallardo 470, 1405, Buenos Aires, Argentina

    G. A. Daneri

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  1. G. A. Daneri
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Daneri, G.A. Fish diet of the Antarctic fur seal,Arctocephalus gazella, in summer, at Stranger Point, King George Island, South Shetland Islands. Polar Biol 16, 353–355 (1996). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02342183

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02342183

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