Records of Subantarctic Fur Seal (Arctocephalus tropicalis) in the central portion of the coast of the State of São Paulo, between 1998 and 2007 André Fabiano de Castro Vicente, Fernando Siqueira Alvarenga, Juliana Plácido Guimarães

Abstract

Thirty-one specimens of subantarctic fur seals (Arctocephalus tropicalis) were found in the central portion of the coast of the State of São Paulo, in the area covering the beaches of Bertioga (23º50’S, 46º05’W) to Peruíbe (24º20’S, 47º00’W), between June 1998 and July 2007. Of these, 80.60% (n=25) were males, 9.7% (n=3) were females, and 9.7% (n=3) could not be sexed. The occurrences occurred between June and October; no occurrences were observed during the summer. A complex system of marine currents appears to play an important role in the dispersal of subantarctic fur seals that are found on the Atlantic coast of South America.