Hydrodamalis gigas

Steller's Sea Cow

Characteristics • The sea cow grew at least 8 to 9

meters, much larger than the manatee. • The adult sea cow can weight 4 to 23

tons.• The head was disproportional agains

the body, it was smaller.• They had an excellent hearing.• The Steller's sea cow was almost mute,

making only deep breathing sounds.

Lifestyle

• Individuals spent the majority of their time feeding or resting.

• Their head could be kept submerged for 4-5 minutes at a time.

• The were most of the time sleeping and searching for food. The juvenils used to hunt.

• When they submerged they sleept for 4-3 min.

• The sea cow was also a slow swimmer and apparently was unable to submerge.

What they eat?

• The sea cows eats seaweed near the surface and sea grasses, but normaly soft algae. They don’t have teeth.

They usually are near the rivers searching for food.

• Fossil evidence indicates that the past distribution of the Steller's Sea Cow was much wider, including the coasts of Japan and North America.

• They were often found near the mouths of stream or rivers, which suggests they could not tolerate drinking marine water.

• They inhabited the shallow cold marine waters

rich in algae and sea grass near the shore around Bering Island and Medney Island (Copper Island).

Range & Habitat

Reproduction

The scientists don’t know a lot of this part, but they say that this animals don’t has a normal reproduction.

They do it in spring, when they are in heat.

The female search the male to reproduce.

Extinction Causes

• The Steller’s Sea Cow was hunted primarily as a source of food. The milk of harvested cows was consumed directly or made into butter. The thick, tough hide was used for shoes, belts and to make skin-covered boats

• The intense hunting of sea otters on the Bering Sea islands may have contributed to the final extinction of the Steller's Sea Cow.

• The sea cows would have faced a new competitor for food.  (Weinstein & Patton, 2000)

Relatives