South Australia is taking a lead role in the recovery of the endangered Australian sea lion with a new national committee meeting for the first time in Adelaide.
The committee is to assist the Australian Government create and adopt a new recovery plan to guide conservation actions for the sea lions through to 2033.
Department for Environment and Water’s Director of Strategy, Science and Corporate Services and Chairwoman of the National Recovery Team, Sandy Carruthers said the status of Australian sea lions was reassessed in 2020 from vulnerable to endangered, indicating an increased risk of extinction.
“The National Recovery Team will play an important role in ensuring there is a collaborative approach to Australian sea lion recovery,” Ms Carruthers said.
“The team includes a broad range of stakeholders and experts,” she said.
“I look forward to working with all of them to support the Australian Government to create and adopt an updated plan which supports the recovery of this iconic mammal over the next 10 years.”
She said Sea lions were listed as vulnerable in South Australia under the National Parks and Wildlife Act 1972.
She said they were commercially hunted for oil and leather during the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.
“Unlike other pinnipeds hunted during that time, the population has not recovered,” Ms Carruthers said.
“Unique to SA and WA waters, there are estimated to be fewer than 12,000 sea lions in existence and there is evidence the population remains in decline.”
She said the national recovery team was being led by SA’s Department for Environment and Water and it included the Conservation Council of SA, Western Australian Department of Biodiversity and Attractions, the Australian Marine Conservation Society and the science community and Aboriginal representatives.
“The recovery team will play an important role in prioritising on ground actions and ensuring there is a coordinated approach to sea lion management,” she said.
“About 80 per cent of Australia’s sea lion population lives in SA waters and the State Government is committed to ensuring appropriate protections are in place for the vulnerable mammal,” Ms Carruthers said.
The committee is to meet quarterly from now on.
