Asian Diver — October 2017

62

Tasmania, Australia

People famously flock to Tasmania to

see the weedy seadragons, but there

are some far larger and more spirited

inhabitants to be found in these

temperate waters. The kelp forests

that stretch all around the southeast

coast of the Tasman peninsula provide

a habitat for some very charismatic,

and endangered, sea lions. They belong

to the family of the Australian sea lion

(Neophoca cinerea), and their declining

population is now thought to be

just 15,000.

These cheeky mammals are

extremely playful, and with the males

growing up to two-and-a-half metres

long and weighing around 300 kilos,

and the females topping out at around

180 centimetres and 100 kilos, these are

some hefty partners for games of rough

and tumble. It’s a great adventure to

play with them, if you are prepared to

lose your fins....

TASMANIA

AUSTRALIA

TASMAN ISLANDS

By Gerald Nowak

UNEXPECTED ASIA

TASMAN ISLANDS