DISTRIBUTION AND ABUNDANCE OF NEW-ZEALAND FUR SEALS, ARCTOCEPHALUS-FORSTERI, IN SOUTH-AUSTRALIA AND WESTERN-AUSTRALIA

A survey to determine the distribution and abundance of New Zealand fu r seals, Arctocephalus forsteri, in South Australia and Western Austra lia was conducted in January-March 1990. Minor surveys were conducted in the summers of 1987-88, 1988-89 and 1990-91. Although the surveys w ere primarily of black pups in breeding colonies, opportunity was take n to count fur seals of all age-classes, including those in non-breedi ng colonies. Pups were counted and, in more accessible and larger colo nies, numbers of pups were estimated by a mark-recapture technique. Th e latter technique gave higher estimates than counting, and was consid ered more accurate. In South Australia, the seals extend from The Page s in Backstairs Passage to Nuyts Reef in the Great Australian Bight. I n Western Australia, the range comprised islands on the south coast fr om the Recherche Archipelago to islands near Cape Leeuwin. There are 2 9 breeding localities; 13 are in South Australia and 16 in Western Aus tralia. Eighteen of these have not been reported previously. The term 'breeding locality' is used for aggregations of breeding colonies as w ell as for isolated breeding colonies. Estimates of the number of pups for the 1989-90 breeding season were 5636 in South Australia and 1429 in Western Australia. This leads to a population estimate of approxim ately 34 600 seals in these two states (using a multiplier of 4.9). Bu t such estimates of overall abundance must be treated cautiously as th e multiplier incorporates estimates of population parameters not avail able for A. forsteri. Most of the population (77%) is in central South Australian waters (from Kangaroo Island to the southern end of Eyre P eninsula). With the estimate of 100 for a breeding colony in southern Tasmania, the population of New Zealand fur seals in Australia can be estimated at 34 700. Historical aspects of some colonies are outlined and evidence for increases described. The largest breeding localities are at South Neptune Islands (1964 pups) and North Neptune Islands (14 72). The combined Neptunes group accounts for 49% of the pup estimates for Australia. One-fifth of the pups are from colonies on Kangaroo Is land and the nearby Casuarinas.