Update: The sea lion has been moved to Point Defiance
The sea lion that we first reported on Sunday night is still on the beach at Golden Gardens. It will sometimes move its head or a flipper, but that movement was rare when we were there Monday morning.
Robin Lindsey, a first-responder with Seal Sitters, a conservation group based in West Seattle, headed out to Golden Gardens Monday morning. She tells us that this is a thin male California Sea Lion. “They don’t come on a city beach too often. That’s what makes suspicious. When they do, that perhaps something is wrong,” Lindsey says.
Although there are reports of an injury, biologists need to analyze photos to determine if that’s the reason for coming onto the busy beach.
First thing Lindsey did was cordon off the area around the sea lion. The perimeter is not just for the safety of the animal, but for people as well. “If he’s injured or sick, he could be aggressive if he doesn’t have the ability to get away,” Lindsey tells us. “They have rather fierce teeth and they can create a serious wound to somebody.” Lindsey adds that it is against the law to cross the perimeter and get closer to the sea lion.
The plan right now is to leave him where he is. “Just let him rest before we can determine what’s going on with him,” Lindsey says. She will send her photos to biologists to get a better idea of what happened to this animal.
Seal Sitters does not have a volunteer group in Ballard and Lindsay tells us they’d be happy to train people to be responders when something like this happens. For more information you can contact her at info@sealsitters.org.