For the third year in a row stranded sea lion pups are turning up in droves on California’s beaches.
For the third year in a row stranded sea lion pups are turning up in droves on California’s beaches.
When they arrive most are severely dehydrated and malnourished, requiring significant care from both experts and volunteers.
Though a lot of the efforts result in successfully restoring the pups’ health, many don’t survive.
Given both the number of years this has been going on and the extent of the losses, there’s increasing concern that sea lion populations at large may be in peril.
Whether or not it’s a matter of the area having reached its maximum density, and a resulting scarcity of food, remains under consideration.
Among the alternative proposed explanations for the surge in stranded sea lion pups is a possible warming of sea temperatures.
If that is the case, fish are likely going further below the ocean’s surface in search of cooler waters.
The small pups simply ar
