ID :
137337
Thu, 08/12/2010 - 20:30
Auther :

'Dokdo Sea Lion' to be declared extinct next year


SEOUL, Aug. 12 (Yonhap) -- Sea lions, believed to have lived in the waters of
South Korea's easternmost islets of Dokdo a decade ago, are expected to be
declared extinct next year due to Japan's indiscriminate poaching before and
after the 1910-45 colonial era, the Environment Ministry said Thursday.
The Korea Institute of Environmental Ecology has conducted extensive searches in
the seas around Dokdo and Japan since 2008, but no signs of sea lions have been
found, according to the Ministry of Environment.
Dokdo's sea lions, growing as big as 2.4 meters and 490 kilograms, are estimated
to have lived in the East Sea since the prehistoric ages.
Around early 1900, some 20,000 to 30,000 sea lions were reportedly seen around
the shores of Dokdo.
A Japanese fishing company allegedly caught the animal in excessive numbers from
1904 to 1956, fishing a total of 16,500 sea lions in the East Sea.
As a result, in 1998 the South Korean government put the animal on the endangered
species list after the last sighting in 1970, while the Japanese government
declared its extinction in 1991.
An official from the ministry said that a process to confirm extinction will open
next year.
"In a review on the endangered species list next year, there will be discussion
about declaration," said the official.
brk@yna.co.kr
(END)

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