NATURAL HISTORY · CATALOGUE RECORD
Amsterdam fur seal
Arctocephalus tropicalis (J. E. Gray, 1872)
Source-backed taxonomic record
Accepted species in Catalogue of Life’s 11 September 2026 base release. This preserves the source classification and available supporting data; it is not a completed species monograph.
Open encyclopedia reference
The subantarctic fur seal (Arctocephalus tropicalis) is a species of eared seal found in the southern parts of the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic Oceans. It was first described by Gray in 1872 from a specimen recovered in northern Australia—hence the inappropriate specific name tropicalis.
Wikipedia contributors, Subantarctic fur seal; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T08:11:40.999325+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Arctocephalus tropicalis (J. E. Gray, 1872)
- Name authority
- (J. E. Gray, 1872)
- Common name
- Amsterdam fur seal
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Mammalia
- Order
- Carnivora
- Family
- Otariidae
- Genus
- Arctocephalus
- Extinction status
- Recorded extant
Classification family tree
Nested taxonomic groups from the source. This is not a direct-ancestor chain, a dated evolutionary tree or a phylogenetic reconstruction.
- domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- subphylumVertebrata
- infraphylumGnathostomata
- parvphylumOsteichthyes
- megaclassTetrapoda
- classMammalia Linnaeus, 1758
- subclassTheria Parker & Haswell, 1897
- infraclassEutheria Gill, 1872
- orderCarnivora Bowdich, 1821
- suborderCaniformia Kretzoi, 1938
- familyOtariidae Gray, 1825
- genusArctocephalus É. Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire & F. Cuvier, 1826
- speciesArctocephalus tropicalis (J. E. Gray, 1872)
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Arctocephalus. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Galapagos Fur SealArctocephalus galapagoensis Heller, 1904 | OtariidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Juan Fernández Fur SealArctocephalus philippii (Peters, 1866) | OtariidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Antipodean fur sealArctocephalus forsteri (Lesson, 1828) | OtariidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| South American Fur SealArctocephalus australis (Zimmermann, 1783) | OtariidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Antarctic Fur SealArctocephalus gazella (Peters, 1875) | OtariidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Brown Fur SealArctocephalus pusillus (Schreber, 1775) | OtariidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
Documented distribution
Source distribution statements, not a complete range map. A listed locality is not necessarily a place of origin.
Source literature & publication evidence
References attached to this source record, including nomenclatural citations where supplied. This is a selected bibliography; abbreviated citations remain in the source’s form.
- https://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=180632 Source fields: Taxon.tsv dwc:namePublishedIn, Taxon.tsv dcterms:references
Origins, evidence & remaining research
Name authority and publication references document nomenclature where the source supplies it. They do not establish evolutionary origins or the earliest fossil occurrence.
Specimen-level evidence, morphology, ecological research, phylogenetic studies, a comprehensive bibliography and a located literary passage have not yet been compiled for this record. A suitable sourced image remains to be added.
Dataset citation & attribution
This exact taxon in ChecklistBank · Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11
Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11; dataset 316321; doi:10.48580/dgz5n. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . Retrieved 5 October 2026.
Stable key: col:67S2R. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.