Sea lion bites in SF's Aquatic Park

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Chavodel8en

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So there may be a particularly frisky sea lion in SF's Aquatic Park - 2 bites in 2 days.

Second swimmer attacked by sea lion at SF’s Aquatic Park

I love harbor seals, but Ive always been a bit wary of sea lions. Their interactions seem a little menacing to me. And they are a-holes for killing molas for "sport"

I guess I shouldn't complain about the effort of pulling on 8mm of neoprene - nice to have if a sea lion ever wants to get pushy with me.
 
I feel a little safer having a big camera rig I can put between me and frisky critters...
 
Interesting article; some of those bites entailed more serious injuries than I expected.

Richard.
 
It may not be frisky, if the algae blooms doesn't just kill sea life it also f***s it up.

from Dozens Of Sea Lions Sickened With Domoic Acid Poisoning
The center has taken in 70 sea lions since the start of July. All have had domoic acid poisoning.

The acid is a neurotoxin released by algal blooms and can cause severe or even permanent brain damage.


Bob
 
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MaxBottomtime got bit a few years back on the arm down in Socal.
I’ve been stared down a few times on work dives, kind of insettling knowing those big guys could Rag doll you and ruin your day.
Someone told me they get super territorial during mating season and figure everyone is after their woman.
 
some of those bites entailed more serious injuries than I expected.

They are a strong predator that can catch, fight, and defend with their teeth. I would expect they can give a nasty bite
 
So there may be local zombie sea lions feasting on human flesh. Nice! "The Finning Dead."


Not to make light of the impacts on the sea lions. As wary as I am of them, I love the big lugs and I know recent years has been tough going for them
 
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I used to work as marine biologist/underwater videographer on Lindblad Expeditions eco-cruises. One of our stops in the Sea of Cortez was Los Islotes where there is a large sea lion hauling ground. On one stop a Hollywood director who was on board was snorkeling there when a juvenile sea lion "jumped" on him and starting nipping at him, tearing off small pieces of wetsuit in the process. I was underwater filming when this occurred, but saw it. When we got back to the boat he exclaimed it was one of the most thrilling things to happen to him despite the blood. I did warn him about some of the diseases that can be transmitted to humans.

Good thing it was just a juvenile instead of one of the much bigger bulls that patrolled the area!
 
Fourth bite in 2 months The swimmers' claim the sea lion tried to drag the swimmer under (although I note that the bite was such that the swimmer wanted to brush off hospital care for). These swimmers may want to use wetsuits. I imagine the sea lions can bite through, but I hope it can lessen the damage.

Fourth sea lion attack at SF’s Aquatic Park; swimmer bitten on knee

Imagine if sea lions had a taste for human flesh. Would you still dive?
 
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