First record of a leucistic sub-Antarctic fur seal

• Published in: Polar Biology
• Main Authors: Jones, Christopher W., Risi, Michelle M., Osborne, Alexis, Bester, Marthan Nieuwoudt
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Springer 2019
• Subjects: Arctocephalus tropicalis; Gough Island; Hypo-pigmentation; Pinniped; Rare trait; Antarctic; Austral; Gough; The Beaches; Antarc*; Antarctic Fur Seal; Antarctic Fur Seals; Polar Biology; South African National Antarctic Programme; South Atlantic Ocean
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/2263/70141; https://doi.org/10.1007/s00300-019-02506-3

Anomalous pelage colourations have been reported to occur in several pinniped species and can potentially be used to assess gene flow amongst conspecific populations. Aberrant pelage colour has not been documented in sub-Antarctic fur seals Arctocephalus tropicalis older than pups. Sub-Antarctic fur seals were inspected on two of the beaches at Gough Island, South Atlantic Ocean, in the austral summer of 2018/19. A leucistic adult male was sighted on 09 January 2019, the first recorded leucistic individual for the species. Given the apparent extreme rarity of leucism in this sub-Antarctic pinniped species, it is unlikely to contribute to assessment of gene flow amongst conspecific populations. The South African Department of Environmental Affairs through the South African National Antarctic Programme (SANAP), the National Research Foundation (South Africa), the FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology (University of Cape Town), Mammal Research Institute (University of Pretoria) and the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB). http://link.springer.com/journal/300 2020-06-01 hj2019 Mammal Research Institute Zoology and Entomology