Japanese Sea Lion
( Zalophus japonicus)
The Japanese Sea Lion was an aquatic mammal found along the northwest Pacific coastline, specifically in Japan, Korea, southern Kamchatka Peninsula, and the Sakhalin Island. The Japanese Sea Lion's appearance was gray, reaching lengths of 8 ft (2.5 m) and weighing up to 1,239 lb (560 kg).
Records from Japanese commercial fishermen in the beginning of the 1900s showed that as many as 3,200 sea lions were caught. Overhunting caused harvest numbers to drop drastically to 300 sea lions by 1915 and to a few dozen sea lions by the 1930s. Japanese commercial harvest of Japanese sea lions ended in the 1940s when the species became virtually extinct. Japanese fishermen caught as many as 16,500 sea lions in total, enough to cause their extinction.
The Japanese Sea Lion meat was described by the Japanese fisherman as not tasting great. The JapaneseSea Lions were instead caught for oil that was extracted from the skin, its internal organs were used to make expensive medicine, and its whiskers and skin were used as pipe cleaners and leather goods. In the 20th century, they were also captured for use in circuses. Until 1970 when the Japanese Sea Lion was officially declared extinct.
To more about conservation efforts of other sea lion species visit the link below:
https://www.nmmf.org/our-work/conservation-medicine/saving-sea-lions/