We were working our way up Blackfish Sound looking for some killer whales reported to be in the area when we came upon a Steller sea lion. This sea lion cam within 5 meters (yards) of the back of the boat, of course I missed that photo. Sea lions are very curious and if you sit quietly in a boat they will approach quite close.
Tag Archives: Sea Lions
Curious visitors
Picnic lunches on your day with the whales and other abundant marine life are most often eaten in the boat while drifting. It is sort of like the movie “Feed of Dreams” in that the drifting means that all is quite and most mammals are curious and will come to investigate something that is different. The different being a boat without a motor running which allows a much closer approach from these Steller sealions.
More Impressive?
Steller sea lions are much more impressive than harbour seals in size, volume of their roars and of course smell. Some sea lions now live in the area all year but are only on a number of haul out sites in the spring and fall when migrating between California and Alaska.
Nice Place to Visit BUT-
It is a nice place for watching wildlife but I would not want to have our picnic lunch to close to the Steller sea lions. There are a few sea lions that remain in our area all year but there are definitely more in the spring and fall during their migration between Alaska and California. The noise and aroma are enough to make sure that we are at least upwind in a quieter location for lunch.
Decorated Sea Lion
Steller sea lions are a common sight on our whale watching trips to the Johnstone Strait area. Not as common is a sea lion with a “flasher” hanging from its mouth. A flasher is an attracter used when fishing for salmon to give a lure action. In this case there must be an angry fisher who lost their lure to a sea lion. The sea lion likely took and swallowed the bait attached to the flasher and now has it hook caught inside. Hooks are designed to rust out in a few weeks and it was not long after this photo the flasher was spotted on the rocks without the sea lion attached.
Steller Sea Lions
AKA Steller sea lion, Steller’s sea lion, northern sea lion are in are viewing area all year around but much more abundant in late May to early June on their way North and again in late August through September when returning south. These male Steller sea lions average a nose-to-tail length of 3 m (9 ft.) and weigh about 700 kg (1500 lbs.). When dry, Steller sea lions are a tan to golden-brown color and darken to a chocolate brown on their flippers and underside. They appear dark brown or black when wet.
Steller Sea Lions at Rest
Steller sea lions range throughout the Pacific Rim (from northern California to Northern Honshu in Japan, and to the Bering Strait). Steller sea lions are highly gregarious and they use traditional haul out sites (an area used for resting) on remote and exposed islands. These sites can be rock shelves, ledges, boulders, and gravel or sand beaches. Adult Steller sea lions eat a wide variety of fishes, including Pacific herring, pollock, salmon, cod, and rockfishes. They also eat octopus and some squids. Over the past five years more of these sea lions are spending their summers in our viewing area rather than traveling to more northern waters.
Steller Sea Lion Breaching
Over the years it is not uncommon to watch Steller sea lions play with humpback whales but the behaviour exhibited in this picture was new. We were following a pod of dolphins when this sea lion came up on the other side of the boat breaching or porpoising like the dolphins. It was not just a one-time breach rather it followed the boat for at least a kilometer (mile) with continuous breaches. Another marvel of nature that is hard to explain.
Branded Steller Sea Lion
This Steller sea lion was branded at Forrester Island in Southeast Alaska that is the “F” in the brand. Branding occurs at several places along the west coast of North America as part of project to discover the reasons behind the mysterious disappearance of sea lions and what it could mean for the ocean ecosystem. Since 1980, the world population of Steller sea lions (Eumetopias jubatus) has dropped from around 300,000 animals to fewer than 100,000, and it is still declining. Possible causes include increased incidence of parasites and disease, predation by killer whales, nutritional stress through competition with man or other species for food, or nutritional stress caused by natural and/ or human-induced changes in the abundance, quality and distribution of prey. Other factors that may be contributing to the population decline include meteorological changes (i.e., frequency of storms), pollution and toxic substances, entanglement in marine debris, and incidental and intentional take by man. Whether the decline is caused by a single factor or a combination of all of the above is a matter of scientific debate.
Curious 1 of 3
Most marine wildlife is curious but the key is to be sitting / drifting quietly. This viewing area has a fast tidal current that allows us to drift past a number (25 to 150) Steller sealions at a haulout on a small rocky island. The many young sea lions in the water will come and play around and under the boat and given time will approach quite close.
