Guadalupe Fur Seal Population Census and Tagging in Support of Marine Mammal Monitoring Across Multiple Navy Training Areas in the Pacific Ocean

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Guadalupe fur seals are listed as threatened under the U.S. Endangered Species Act and endangered under Mexican law. However, prior to the first year of this study in 2018, the last full census for this species was in 2010, making it difficult to develop current and accurate population estimates and trends. To determine the degree to which this recovering population uses U.S. Navy training and testing ranges in the North Pacific, updated population information for Guadalupe fur seals is needed in addition to tracking at-sea movement patterns using satellite transmitters. Similar to 2018, during the 2019 summer breeding season, direct counts of Guadalupe fur seals were conducted at Guadalupe Island and San Benito Archipelago, México.