Sea you later!
Dozens of beachgoers in San Diego ran for his or her lives when a defensive sea lion charged on the unwelcomed human visitors who seemingly approached its pups.
The ocean lion was captured on video swimming around La Jolla Cove with the babies before it began barking on the swimmers on June 23.
“Oh, they’re sort of close, get out of the water, fat ass,” one person could be heard saying before the ocean lion rushes out of the water.
Several people jumped up from where they were seated on the beach because the sea lion leaped toward them.
Some leisurely carried their belongings away while others pulled out their phones to document their close encounter with the protective mother, video captured by tourist Lauren Bertrand shows.
“Visited La Jolla, CA this weekend to see the Sea Lions of their (natural) habitat and to learn more about these ‘protected’ ecosystems,” Bertrand said on TikTok. “The people were peopling and this big guy was NOT having it.”
The video cuts to an adult sea lion and a juvenile in a full sprint barreling toward swimmers, forcing them to either run out of the best way or flop backward into the water.
The ocean lion put the brakes on her attack before anyone was injured.
La Jolla Cove is situated roughly 200 yards from Point La Jolla, a rocky portion of the San Diego coastline, which has changed into a preferred hang-out spot for sea lions.
Point La Jolla was closed for public access indefinitely last September following complaints from residents and activists to guard the ocean lions.
The unanimous city council decision got here months after an identical situation where two large sea lions charged at beachgoers wading within the waters of La Jolla Cove.
“Please give that enormous, male sea lion loads of room,” a lifeguard could be heard saying over a loudspeaker. “They’ve bitten people, and so they are protected animals.”
San Diego has provided ample warnings to the general public alerting them of the risks they risk going near the wildlife living in the world.
“Members of the general public have been observed attempting to touch, take selfies, and get as near sea lions as possible which is a dangerous situation for each the general public and the animals,” the town’s website reads.
It’s dangerous for humans to get near the Califonia sea lions throughout the summer months, as pupping season runs from early May and late October.
Those months are “a vital time for mother sea lions and their young to bond, nurse and learn to swim.”
Human interactions with adult sea lions and their young during this era could lead to injury or abandonment of sea lion offspring and aggressive behavior from adult sea lions,” the web site warns. “These interactions usually are not only dangerous for each humans and wildlife, it could be a violation of the federal Marine Mammal Protection Act which helps to safeguard these animals.”
Together with the digital warnings, signs have been posted throughout the beach, detailing designated swim areas, closed-off sections and reminders to not bring dogs in certain areas.