Quote:
Originally Posted by Sarcastic Fringehead
Aside from the occasional pest of a sea lion stealing some bait and cruising closer to your yak than you might be comfortable with, has anyone seriously been attacked by a sea lion? Seems like a lot of talk about a relative non-issue to me. Sounds a bit like a bear that has learned to raid garbage cans- only without the imminent threat posed by their being a nuisance. Just my opinion, but I'd say, get over it, they aren't that big a deal.
Dan
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Over the last several years a number of people have been injured by sea lion. They have been known to snatch fish from people on docks and boats; leading to bite wounds. Sea lion also aggressively protect their haul out spots. Males are aggressive and territorial in the mating season. There are probably 250,000 California Sea Lion on the west coast of the US and in Baja, with the population increasing at about 5% a year. Their numbers are increasing and commercial/recreational fishing is reducing their food supply. They are smart and have learned that people in kayaks and boats can provide them with an easy meal. And on top of all that, their protected status over the last 35 years seems to have eliminated any natural fear of humans. Given all of these conditions, it only stands to reason that there will be an increased number of interactions between sea lion and kayakers. Due to the vulnerability of a person on a kayak any encounter with an aggressive sea lion has the potential for severe consequences.
You're correct in that there is a lot of talk about something that hasn't happened often; just as there is always a lot of talk about GWS attacks. People like to talk about things that are dangerous. And most people do "get over it." I don't know anybody who says "Nah man, I'm not going out today. Too many dogs." It doesn't mean that you shouldn't discuss how the risk might be mitigated.
BTW: When I started kayaking in 2002 I never worried about sea lion. I thought they were cute little harmless furbags. I changed my mind after an encounter with an overly aggressive male that porpoised over my kayak at full speed. I had paddled too close to his haul-out on Zuniga Jetty and he chased me for a good hundred yards. It scared the crap out of me when he shot over my forward hatch at eye level
. I can only imagine what would have happened had I caught that dog in the noggin.
