Cavorting California Sea Lions Return to Monterey’s Old Fisherman’s Wharf

Cavorting California Sea Lions Return to Monterey’s Old Fisherman’s Wharf

July 22, 2023. Monterey, CA. For all of us who enjoy seeing California Sea Lions up close, a group of cavorting, barking California sea lions have returned to the cove directly across from Paluca Trattoria and Candy World at Monterey’s Old Fisherman’s Wharf.

Although it’s very important to keep a safe distance from this group of wild marine mammals and not climb onto the rocks near them for selfies, both children and adults alike will delight in seeing them interacting and cavorting afternoons and evenings in the water. It’s especially fun to watch the sea lions break off in pairs and start swimming around with each other, splashing and doing water acrobatics. Many give them the "seal of approval" for a great viewing activity!

It's hard to predict how long these pinniped visitors will be on site for viewing at Old Fisherman’s Wharf but many hope they’ll be staying for the upcoming Car Week in August. It's convenient to take the free MST Trolley from Downtown Monterey to the head of the Wharf to go see them or park in the spacious Waterfront Parking Lot nearby.

About California Sea Lions

California sea lions often live close to people. They gather in shallow waters, beaches, and manmade structures like docks, buoys, and jetties on the western coast of North America, along the Pacific Ocean.

These marine mammals from the seal family, or pinnipeds (meaning “fin-footed” in Latin), can be identified by their ear flaps, large front flippers, and strong rear flippers that rotate under their body, allowing them to “walk” on land. You’ll also hear them—they gather in herds and bark like dogs.

Adult females and pups are slender-bodied and are lighter in color (blonde to tan), while adult males are generally larger and mostly dark brown to black. These sea lions are intelligent and trained easily, which is in part why they’re commonly seen in zoos and aquariums.

California sea lions eat a variety of prey found in coastal waters, including squid, anchovies, mackerel, rockfish, and sardines.  California sea lions are very social, gathering in groups. They like to rest packed on top of each other on beaches, docks, and jetties, but will also float together in the ocean in groups called “rafts.”

They’ve even been seen interacting with other pinnipeds, like harbor seals and Northern fur seals.

The animals return to their rookeries (breeding grounds) in central and south California annually, where females give birth to pups in early summer. Mothers carry pups for around nine months, like humans. Each mother will usually give birth to only one pup.

Newborns weigh 13 to 20 pounds and stay with their mother for about a year to nurse and learn how to swim and find food. Mothers and pups identify each other through smell and vocalizations.

(Source: Nationalgeographic.com)

California sea lions are known for their intelligence, playfulness and noisy barking. Their fur color ranges from chocolate brown seen in males to a lighter, golden brown seen in females. Another key difference between males and females is that male sea lions are much larger—reaching up to 600 to 850 pounds and 7 feet in length. Females grow to 200 to 250 pounds and up to 6 feet in length.

These sea lions have a dog-like face, and starting at 4 years old, males develop a bony bump on top of their skull known as a sagittal crest, which is fully developed by 7 years old. The top of a male sea lion’s head often gets lighter in color with age.

As a member of the otariid or “walking seal” family, California sea lions have large flippers that they use to walk on land. Another distinctive physical characteristic is their external ear flaps.

For more information or to report an animal in significant distress, call The Marine Mammal Center’s hotline at 415-289-SEAL (7325). Their experts will monitor the animal and, if necessary, send trained responders to rescue it safely.

(Source: Marinemammalcenter.org)