Family Otariidae - Eared seals (14 species in 7 genera)
All sea lions and fur seals have a polygynous mating system and pronounced sexual dimorphism. Characteristics of this family are: small external ear flaps (pinnae), smooth vibrissae, light skin, a dense double layer of fur with short underfur and longer guard hairs, partially hairless fore- and hindflippers, 4 teats in females, scrotal testes, and skulls with supraorbital processes and sagittal crests (the latter enlarged in adult males only). Eared seals swim with their large foreflippers and can rotate their hindflippers forward to walk and climb on all fours on land. While resting at sea most elevate flippers in various combinations out of the water.
Genera
Genus Arctocephalus containing 8 species:
Arctocephalus australis (South American fur seal)
Arctocephalus forsteri (New Zealand fur seal)
Arctocephalus galapagoensis (Galapagos fur seal)
Arctocephalus gazella (Antarctic fur seal)
Arctocephalus philippii (Juan Fernandez fur seal)
Arctocephalus pusillus (Australian fur seal)
Arctocephalus townsendi (Guadalupe fur seal)
Arctocephalus tropicalis (Subantarctic fur seal)
Genus Callorhinus containing 1 species:
Callorhinus ursinus (Northern fur seal)
Genus Eumetopias containing 1 species:
Eumetopias jubatus (Steller sea lion)
Genus Neophoca containing 1 species:
Neophoca cinerea (Australian sea lion)
Genus Otaria containing 1 species:
Otaria byronia (South American sea lion)
Genus Phocarctos containing 1 species:
Phocarctos hookeri (Hooker's sea lion)
Genus Zalophus containing 1 species:
Zalophus californianus (California, Galapagos or Japanese sea lion)