The California sea lion (Zalophus californianus) is a coastal eared seal native to western North America.It is one of six species of sea lion.Its natural habitat ranges from southeast Alaska to central Mexico, including the Gulf of California.Sea lions are sexually dimorphic; males are larger than females, and have a thicker neck, and protruding sagittal crest. Sea lions generally favor beaches on the windward side of islands. genetic mating system of California sea lions, we used genotype data from 14 polymorphic microsatellite loci to evaluate the type of polygyny (resource defense vs. a lek-like system), the degree of male reproductive skew, and the potential for alternative mating tactics present at three breeding sites on two sea lion rookeries in the Gulf. Pinnipeds (seals and sea lions) exhibit a variety of mating strategies which range from monogamy (e.g., largha seal, Phoca largha) to strong polygyny (e.g., elephant seals, genus Mirounga, Steller sea lion, Eumetopias jubatus) , making them ideal for the study of mating systems. The reproduction process for the Australian Sea Lion is very different from that of other Sea Lions. Sea Lion Breeding and Reproduction. The Marine Mammal Center has not rescued many Steller sea lions because they are not common along our rescue range and haul out in remote areas. Males and females reach sexual maturity between 4-5 years of age. Artemis was a Steller sea lion that was rescued as a five to 10 day old abandoned pup from Año Nuevo Island in 1999. However, the Australian Sea Lion has an open window of up to 9 months. The peak of mating … Most of the time a colony has a breeding season of four months with the other species. Mating couple of sea lions having sex or breeding on floating wooden raft at Pier 39 in Fisherman& x27;s Wharf district during sunset, San Francisco, California, USA. California sea lions are our most common patients at The Marine Mammal Center. They are also exposed to extreme stochastic changes Even though they have fearsome canine teeth (used primarily to grab fish), sea lions typically swallow their food whole. They have an 18 month cycle rather than one 12 months in length. Reproduction. Mating Activity. Establishing a territory is important to a male’s success in breeding and mating begins approximately three weeks after the females give birth. California sea lion bulls establish breeding territories on the beach from May to August. Most of the time a colony has a breeding season of four months with the other species. This is because they have to be strong enough to be able to stand their ground against other males and … California sea lions tend to breed on the same section of beach year after year. DIET AND HUNTING California sea lions feed on more than 50 species of seafood, mainly squid and fish. Male Sea Lions are mature about at about 6 years of age. In the Pacific, sea lions at the subtropical Ballestas Islands (Peru) have the longest breeding season reported for the species (mid-December to mid-March; Soto et al. Most of the Steller sea lions we have rescued have been orphaned pups. Nearly 1400 of these were California sea lions. MATING AND BREEDING California sea lions breed around May to June.