The Ministry of Fisheries has signalled it is unlikely to change the allowable number of fishing-related sea lion deaths next year.
The Department of Conservation lifted the status of the New Zealand sea lion to critically endangered a month ago because the population had fallen to less than 10,000.
The ministry has set the limit of sea lions that can be killed as a consequence of the squid fishing operation in the sub-Antarctic ocean at 76.
It says the number of New Zealand sea lion pups rose by 20% this year to about 1800.
But deepwater fisheries manager Aoife Martin says that does not automatically mean the by-catch limit will be changed.
She says the squid fishery can exist alongside a sustainable sealion population.
