An eared seal or otariid orejas pan otary is any member of the marine mammal family Otariidae, one of three groupings of pinnipeds. Cladogram showing relationships among the otarids, combining several phylogenetic analyses.
The fur seal tree is not fully resolved. North Pacific, diversifying rapidly into the Southern Hemisphere, where most species now live. Otariids have proportionately much larger foreflippers and pectoral muscles than phocids, and have the ability to turn their hind limbs forward and walk on all fours, making them far more maneuverable on land. They are generally considered to be less adapted to an aquatic lifestyle, since they breed primarily on land and haul out more frequently than true seals. However, they can attain higher bursts of speed and have greater maneuverability in the water.
Otariids are further distinguished by a more dog-like head, sharp, well-developed canines, and the aforementioned visible external pinnae. Their postcanine teeth are generally simple and conical in shape. Sea lions are covered with coarse guard hairs, while fur seals have a thick underfur, which has historically made them the objects of commercial exploitation. All otariids breed on land during well-defined breeding seasons. Except for the Australian sea lion, which has an atypical 17. 5 month breeding cycle, they form strictly annual aggregations on beaches or rocky substrates, often on islands.
Otariids are carnivorous, feeding on fish, squid and krill. Sea lions tend to feed closer to shore in upwelling zones, feeding on larger fish, while the smaller fur seals tend to take longer, offshore foraging trips and can subsist on large numbers of smaller prey items. Genus Arctocephalus Brown fur seal, A. Genus Callorhinus Northern fur seal, C. Genus Eumetopias Steller sea lion, E.
Genus Neophoca Australian sea lion, N. Genus Otaria South American sea lion, O. Genus Zalophus California sea lion, Z. The Origin and Evolutionary Biology of Pinnipeds: Seals, Sea Lions, and Walruses”. Annual Review of Earth and Planetary Sciences. Use of spectral analysis to test hypotheses on the origin of pinnipeds”. Sexual-size dimorphism: influence of mass and mating systems in the most dimorphic mammals”.