New Zealand Fur Seal
Arctocephalus forsteri
Red List assessment
Least Concernon the IUCN Red List
- EXExtinct
- EWExtinct in the Wild
- CRCritically Endangered
- ENEndangered
- VUVulnerable
- NTNear Threatened
- LCLeast Concern
The IUCN Red List assesses the New Zealand Fur Seal as Least Concern.
- Genus
- Arctocephalus
- Red List category
- Least Concern
- Data updated
- August 9, 2026
We haven't written this profile yet
The New Zealand Fur Seal is one of the mammals assessed by the IUCN Red List, so it has a page here — with its scientific name, Arctocephalus forsteri, its conservation category and, where one is known, a recorded observation on the map. What is missing is the rest: habitat, distribution, diet, behaviour, threats and the conservation work under way.
Each profile is researched and checked one species at a time, and there are thousands to go. You can put this one at the front of the queue.
In the meantime, the full assessment is on the IUCN Red List.
Questions about the New Zealand Fur Seal
Is the New Zealand Fur Seal endangered?
The IUCN Red List assesses the New Zealand Fur Seal as Least Concern. The species is widespread and abundant enough not to qualify for any threatened category. It does not mean the species is safe forever, only that nothing in the current data raises an alarm.
What is the scientific name of the New Zealand Fur Seal?
The New Zealand Fur Seal is Arctocephalus forsteri.
Other species in the genus Arctocephalus
Sources
Conservation status, range description and population estimate come from the IUCN Red List assessment for Arctocephalus forsteri. Countries are derived from that range description, not from a mapped country list. Last refreshed on .
The distribution map is drawn from the IUCN Red List spatial data compiled in 2015. Louise Chilvers