A national study will look at why sea lion populations are falling and provide genome sequencing for the endangered marine mammal for the first time.The study will help develop management strategies under the 10-year Threatened Species Action Plan to help the species survive.
A new study, involving universities from around the country, will try to pinpoint what is preventing the species, once decimated by sealing, from recovering to healthy levels. "We will be going out to those populations over the next 18 months during the breeding season and taking a number of samples from pups.
As well as the institute's scientists, researchers from Macquarie University, the University of Sydney, the University of Western Australia, the Minderoo Foundation, and the South Australian Department for Environment and Water will also be involved in the study.The possible impact of toxoplasmosis parasites — found in cat faeces and known to affect reproductive rates in sheep — will be investigated, as the parasite is "fairly widespread in a lot of marine organisms".
A separate research project using cameras attached to sea lions discovered prey habitats that could impact the species' survival.A third part of the project will use data from 13 consecutive breeding seasons at Seal Bay, on Kangaroo Island, to assess the impact of extreme heat events that are becoming more prevalent with climate change.