English title: Predation interactions between orca's (Orcinus orca) and South-American sea lions (Otario flavescens) along the coast of Patagonia, Argentina Period: 2003 till 2005 Status: Completed
Vrije Universiteit Brussel; Vakgroep Biologie; Laboratorium voor Ecotoxicologie en Polaire Ecologie (ETOX), more, co-ordinator
Argentine Museum of Natural Sciences (MACN), more, co-ordinator
Orcas (Orcinus orca) hunt a wide diversity of prey, marine mammals with pinnipedia as a wellknown food source.
At Punta Norte, orcas have been observed to forage on sea lions by intentional stranding.
Sea lions breed from December to April and orcas come to feed in March and April when pups start to move into the water.
The aim of the study was to investigate the how this predatory interaction had changed between 1988-1989 and 2003-2004. We also controlled for predator's preferences and sea lion anti-predatory adaptations.
