When in Oceanside, one of our favorite pauses is at the purposefully built Sea Lion dock. These pinnipeds are raucous fun to watch.
The Oceanside harbor gets both sea lions and seals, but the sea lions are more common. They are larger, more vocal and more aggressive than seals, and they can support themselves and walk on their front flippers.The population at the Oceanside harbor fluctuates depending on the season and other factors. Sometimes the marine mammals congregate farther north or south. The numbers looked lower than normal even though our weather has been exceptional.This baby was the star of the show. What a hoot!Sea lions were hunted for their pelts to near extinction early in the previous century. They are still sometimes shot illegally by fishermen trying to protect their catch.The species has been protected since 1972 by the Marine Mammal Protection Act, and since then their population has steadily increased. The act specifies that the animals can't be harmed, but shouts, noise makers, water hoses and flashing lights are OK to keep them at a distance.Sometimes the sea lions, which can grow to be 7 feet long and up to 800 pounds, become a nuisance. They certainly lay about wherever they want, which can damage boats when those are their chosen places.
Most of the time, when we've observed them, they look like this... content to just be!Life is good in Oceanside!
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1 comments:
It isn’t good, it’s great!
Such a cute seal. I am going to try to get a peak today after work. :)
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