The Galapagos Sea Lion its really an endemic subspecies of the California Sea Lion, Californianus of Zalophus and it is the most common native mammal of the islands.
Their population is considered in approximately 50.000. En some location there are so many of them that it's difficult to walk freely .
The adult males are very similar in weight and size to a bull. Although they can be very clumsy on land, they can move amazingly good in water and manage to handle all their heavy body of 560 pounds (250 kilograms).
Adult males known as bulls are the head of their colony, and during mating season they could become really aggressive.
They will fight to win dominance for a territory that will include a harem of females. These bulls will fight off any intruders entering their territory, even humans, so if you get lost in their territory you will get a warning from a bull. In such a case the best thing to do is to go away and get yourself in a safer area.
Sometimes they will fight off giving serious bites to their opponents, also it is known some events were divers have been bitten because they didn't pay attention to their warnings.
An important characteristic never told before in any tourist guide is that sea lions have a very penetrating odor that is distinguished from a certain distance. With the exception of the aggressive males and the concerned females about their puppies, sea lions are so charming that it is hard not try to touch them. The tourist should remember at any moment to not interfere with the animals natural life.
The main rule to follow is "you cannot touch them, but they can touch you", another rule for the tourist is to stay in the marked paths.
| Fur Seal
As the California Sea Lion, the Fur Seal is a pinniped, but it is smaller and less abundant. Not very similar to the sea lion, the Galapagoensis de Arctocephalus it's an endemic species from the Galapagos, it is closely related to the Southern Fur Seal Arctocephalus australis. Their coats of dark gray brown to dusky black nearly lead these animals to extinction, as hunters targeted them
In the 1930's the Ecuadorian government approved the protection of the species. While the sea lions live in bigger colonies and they prefer protected beaches, the fur seals tend to live in smaller groups, in more sharp and rocky banks.
Although both of them feed themselves out of fish and squid, fur seals differentiate between sea lions in the way that they feed themselves mainly at night , diving at average depths of only 100 feet (30 meters) and a maximum of 280 feet (85 meters). While sea lions fish during the day and the dive deeply, reaching an average of 130 feet (40 meters) and a maximum of 600 feet (180 meters).
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