California is experiencing something akin to a sea lion state of emergency along its shores. Sea lion pups are showing up starving and sick in record numbers. This tragedy has reached unprecedented levels according to experts monitoring the situation. The National Marine Fisheries Service has declared the situation a ““unusual mortality event” and say that the number of rescues have already surpassed the totals from last year.
It’s a crisis and experts are unsure of what’s causing it. What we are sure of – there are heroes coming out of the woodwork to make sure that these baby sea lions have a chance at survival.
Not surprisingly, they are being led by SeaWorld San Diego and their rescue team.
What is surprising?
SeaWorld San Diego will be temporarily suspending its “Sea Lion and Otter” live show to provide extra resources to mitigating the tragedy. This will allow more staff to work with the stranded sea lion pups. This decision will provide an additional 6 members of animal staff to provide care to the stranded animals. In addition, SeaWorld San Diego is constructing two temporary pools to hold some of the rescued sea lions.
The”Sea Lion and Otter” live show show is one of the most popular among guests to the park, but SeaWorld staff say it’s worth it to free up expert staff to help manage the crisis.
SeaWorld has been helping rescue animals for decades, but in past years, unexplained mortality events affecting sea lions along the California coast have tested the skills and experience of the rescue staff. As of early March 2015, SeaWorld San Diego has already rescued over 400 California sea lions, which is more than twice the average number of marine mammal rescues the park would perform in a year.
And the stranding shows no signs of stopping anytime soon.
This move comes during SeaWorld’s “Wild Days” event, which features some of the stars of the wildlife conservation field. With even larger crowds from “Wild Days,” it becomes an even more significant move that SeaWorld choses to stop a headliner show in order to prioritize animal rescue and rehabilitation.
“While the temporary closure of the sea lion and otter show may be a minor inconvenience to guests, we feel that it is important to ensure we provide the highest level of care necessary to give these stranded sea lions a second chance at life,” says SeaWorld’s David Koontz, “we thank everyone for their patience and understanding.”
You have to check out this emotional video from local ABC news 10:
There are ways you can help:
The Marine Mammal Center in Sausalito is collecting donations for food and treatment for sea lion pups that have been stranded on California beaches. Donations can be made at the center’s website: www.marinemammalcenter.org. The center can be reached at (415) 289-7325.