Sea lion comeback
Sea lions along the California coast are making a comeback.
According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, or NOAA… The sea lion population is the highest it’s been in the past 39 years.
The sea lion population has had some hard times with a lack of food and algae poisoning in these past 39 years.. But noaa officials say they are now back to carrying capacity… or at a sustainable level..
But is the population getting out of control?
Moss Landing is one those special places on the central coast that attracts all kinds of animals, birds, sea otters, and of course sea lions. And this draws a lot of attention from tourists and nearby residents.
Mark Marquez, Paicines Resident says, “I like anything I can cruise up in on my kayak and watch them play around and yeah all the nature out here is pretty cool.”
Assistant harbor master, Tommy Razzeca has worked at the harbor for 8 years, and says the sea lion population has been pretty healthy during his time here. And biologists say…this means they have done their job.
Tommy Razzeca says, “The sea lion population has always been pretty large in Moss Landing, as long as I’ve been here. Uhm, it seems like we get more every year”, “we can have 100s to even thousands in the harbor at any time.”
Razzeca says the only real problem that comes with the sea lions getting out of their natural habitat… the water… is them hanging out on the docs.
Tommy Razzeca, “We always have them down here, and when they are real heavy they’re everywhere”, “They break up docs, destroy docs, damage boats, they can be aggressive and
obviously cause issues when people have to walk past them or they won’t move out of the way to pass them”
Razzeca says he likes the animal, but the damage makes his job a little more difficult. But everyone I talked with today really seemed to enjoy the sea lion increase.
Michelle Ortiz, CSUMB Student says, “And now yea I’ve definitely seen an increase in the past 4 years that I’ve been here”, “but I don’t mind it, I think it’s great.
“They don’t bother me, you know, to me they are just like a deer or a squirrel something I can just check out” says, Mark.
Razzeca says despite the challenges they face with sea lions, it’s good for business with tourists and locals coming to see them, as well as the ecosystem.
