FOLLOWUP: Latest sea-lion killing brings ‘urgent request’ from Seal Sitters Marine Mammal Stranding Network

| West Seattle news | Wildlife

(Photo courtesy Seal Sitters)

On Monday, we reported on a sea lion found dead just south of Lowman Beach Park. Today, Seal Sitters Marine Mammal Stranding Network sends word that a necropsy has confirmed it was shot to death – and they have an “urgent request”:

Yesterday we examined the dead California sea lion discovered on Monday at Lowman Beach. A necropsy was done by a team from the Washington Department of Fish & Wildlife Marine Mammal Investigations and SR3, assisted by Seal Sitters. Examiners recovered a bullet, confirming the suspicion that the otherwise healthy animal had been shot. This case will be turned over to NOAA’s Office of Law Enforcement and is the fifth confirmed gunshot sea lion in Puget Sound and Hood Canal since August.

Seal Sitters requests your help in stopping the violence against sea lions and seals. If you hear gunfire coming from the water, please call 911 immediately. If you witness harassment of marine mammals, please call Seal Sitters at 206-905-SEAL (206-905-7325). You can also report incidents to NOAA’s Office of Law Enforcement at 800-853-1964.

Many thanks to the property owners who gave us permission to secure the carcass until it could be examined. After the necropsy, the carcass was towed and sunk under permit from the EPA.

This is the second Thanksgiving Day in a row with a report like this – last night we were just checking the archive for last year and noted this report about 13 sea-lion deaths linked to “acute trauma from human interaction.”

Kathy November 28, 2019 (11:49 am)

This makes my heart sad and sick. There continue to be selfish, deranged, inhumane people in this world that can’t see past their own ugly attitudes and ego. Educate yourself and see the bigger picture! God help you and this world we are trying to maintain and revive.

Will November 28, 2019 (12:58 pm)

Is there some group that has a problem with sea lions? Do they bother fishermen or something? I’m just struggling to find some sort of rationale for shooting them. Not a justification, just something that makes sense to somebody because if it’s just random violence for violence’s sake, that’s even worse than killing this creature because it’s your competition for a fish.

Just saying November 28, 2019 (2:26 pm)

Yes, if you asked, most fishermen would likely have a problem with sea lions due to the amount of fish they consume on a daily basis. And there is a group of fishermen where it is not illegal for them to shoot a sea lion. If it is that particular group there is nothing NOAA nor the coast guard can do. Every year this happens and for some reason when this gets reported it makes it seem like there is a presumption of a crime taking place when in fact that may not be the case.

HS November 28, 2019 (2:33 pm)

Again? I remember this happening in years past as well. This is awful.

Mj November 28, 2019 (5:23 pm)

Will – Sea Lions eat salmon that are no longer abundant. This is no excuse to shoot a beautiful animal.

Also John November 28, 2019 (6:13 pm)

I hope the killer is found and jailed for life. This type of individual should not be walking our streets.

Christine Cranston November 28, 2019 (7:23 pm)

Why would anyone do this? I am so sad to learn about this murder. If you are the person who murdered an innocent animal, turn your self in. In the northwest, your action is a crime.

TJ November 28, 2019 (7:42 pm)

Sea Lions aren’t liked by many fishermen. My friends who are just sports fishermen despise them, but none would think to shoot one. But there are tons of people out here that do not like them, and the truth is all it takes is 1 person who could be doing this

tm7302 November 29, 2019 (12:56 am)

Some sea lion facts from the ODFW https://www.dfw.state.or.us/fish/SeaLion/

I Prefer Animals November 29, 2019 (2:11 am)

PACT (Preventing Animal Cruelty and Torture) was just signed into law, making despicable, horrific acts like this towards animals a federal crime. It has been proven that people who intentionally harm animals are capable of doing it to humans too. I hope they catch the garbage who did this and lock them up (preferably forever). But what they really deserve is the same fate that they inflicted on this poor defenseless seal.

WiseWoman November 29, 2019 (6:36 am)

My dad was a commercial fisherman in the off seasons of construction (when that was a thing) and although sea lions were annoying he didn’t shoot them. Over the years in Oregon a few sea lions became a whole bunch of huge sea lions and nowadays there are so many of them that they sink docks with the massive weight of all of them.

Sick November 29, 2019 (6:44 am)

This makes me sick to my stomach. I hope the person(s) is found and prosecuted. What a piss of sh*t of a person.

Rick November 29, 2019 (8:34 am)

Big,loud and stinky. That’s how I like ’em but would never,ever think of harming one.

anonyme November 29, 2019 (12:05 pm)

I hope these criminals are caught and I won’t even say what I’d like to see happen to them. Marine mammals need fish to survive; humans do not. If there is any population that needs to be culled due to overbreeding and devastation of habitat, it’s humans.

Scubafrog November 29, 2019 (4:59 pm)

I can’t imagine who’d be shooting them. Maybe it’s just some unwell person out there who likes to kill. Sadly, officials started euthanizing them in Portland down on the Colombia back in April. I hope whoever’s shooting them is caught and prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.

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