Alimentary niche partitioning in the Galapagos sea lion, Zalophus wollebaeki

• Published in: Marine biology Vol. 157; no. 12; pp. 2769 - 2781
• Main Authors: Páez-Rosas, Diego, Aurioles-Gamboa, David
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Berlin/Heidelberg Berlin/Heidelberg : Springer-Verlag 01.12.2010; Springer-Verlag; Springer; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: analysis of variance; Animal and plant ecology; Animal behavior; Animal, plant and microbial ecology; Aquatic mammals; Biological and medical sciences; Biomedical and Life Sciences; breeding season; Breeding seasons; carnivores; Competition; Diet; foraging; Foraging behavior; Freshwater & Marine Ecology; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; fur; Habitat partitioning (Biology); habitats; interspecific competition; lactating females; lactation; Life Sciences; Mammalia; Marine; Marine & Freshwater Sciences; Marine biology; Marine mammals; Microbiology; Niche (Ecology); Oceanography; Original Paper; Pinnipedia; Plankton; Productivity; pups; Sea lions; Sea water ecosystems; Stable isotopes; Synecology; Trophic levels; Variance analysis; Vertebrates: general zoology, morphology, phylogeny, systematics, cytogenetics, geographical distribution; Zalophus; Zoological research; Zoology; Galapagos Islands; Pacific Ocean Islands; Mexico; ISE, Ecuador, Galapagos Is., San Cristobal I; Scat Sample; Identifiable Structure; Scat Analysis; Prey Species; Stable Isotope Analysis; Ecological segregation; Carnivora; Vertebrata; Mammalia; Ecological niche

Sea lions are generally considered opportunistic feeders. However, studies from different areas suggest their diet consists mostly of four to five types of prey. Previous studies in Galapagos sea lions have identified at least three feeding strategies for this species, suggesting diversification of...