Abundance and Breeding Cycle of the Australian Sea Lion in Western Australia

This study assessed sea lion pup production at 9 breeding sites in Western Australia (ranging from Houtman Abrolhos Islands to Six Mile Island at the start of Great Australian Bight) from 1988 to 2001 to estimate population size overall. Trends in pup production, pup mortality and the timing of the breeding season were monitored to gain an understanding of population dynamics across the range of the species in Western Australia.The influence of environmental variables, in particular activity of the Leeuwin Current, in demographic processes was also investigated.本研究于1988年至2001年间，对西澳大利亚州9处繁育位点（分布范围覆盖霍特曼·阿布洛霍斯群岛（Houtman Abrolhos Islands）至大澳大利亚湾起始段的六英里岛）的海狮幼崽繁育量开展评估，以估算其总体种群规模。研究同时监测幼崽繁育量、幼崽死亡率及繁育季节时序的变化趋势，以此解析该物种在西澳大利亚州分布范围内的种群动态。此外还探究了环境变量（尤其是勒温海流（Leeuwin Current）活动）对种群统计过程的影响。