The diet consists of anchovies, sardines, and mackerel, along with cephalopods, crustaceans, bivalve mollusks, and gastropods. Arctocephalus australis individuals usually forage at night and will dive for 3 minutes to an average depth of 29 meters, but will reach a maximum time of 7 minutes and 170 meters in pursuit of food. Numbers of anchovy can fluctuate abruptly in the Pacific Ocean, where El Nino events occur every 2 – 7 years. This will affect reproductive success of females. (Reeves, et al. 1992 & Majluf 1992)

Animal Foods: fish; mollusks; aquatic crustaceans

Primary Diet: carnivore (Piscivore , Eats non-insect arthropods)