Sea Lion Protection Measures GIS Shapefiles

Several species targeted by the groundfish fisheries off Alaska are prey for Steller sea lions (e.g., pollock, Pacific cod, and Atka mackerel). To protect Steller sea lions from potential competition for prey, NOAA Fisheries has closed areas around Steller sea lion rookeries and important haulouts to commercial fishing for prey species. In addition to conserving prey for Steller sea lions, the area closures reduce the potential for the fisheries to disrupt the sea lions’ normal behavior near their terrestrial habitat. When the stock biomass of a Steller sea lion prey species is low, additional controls are applied to the annual catch limits to ensure that prey remain available for sea lions. NOAA Fisheries has also imposed seasonal limits on catch of Steller sea lion prey and limits on catch of these species inside of Steller sea lion critical habitat.

With these protections in place, Steller sea lion populations are increasing in most of their range. Steller sea lion populations continue to decline in the western Aleutian Islands and are not increasing in the central Aleutian Islands. NOAA Fisheries has imposed additional catch limits for Steller sea lion prey in the western and central Aleutian Islands, in addition to the measures noted above, to ensure the fisheries are not likely to affect the potential for these declining populations to survive and recover.