A young girl was caught on video tossing rocks and sand at a California sea lion last week in violation of the federal Marine Mammal Protection Act.
In the footage, captured Feb. 26 at San Diego’s La Jolla Cove, the girl is harassing the sea lion as it tries to rest on the beach.
The girl’s mother or guardian does not intervene until the lifeguard’s rebuke is heard over the loudspeakers: “Little girl in purple, you can leave now, thanks.” (Click here to view the TikTok video.)
TikTok user @raspberryblush_, who captured the footage, is quoted by CBS 8 as saying the girl “had thrown rocks/sand like two more times before this announcement.”
While the girl meant no harm, she was interrupting a wild animal trying to rest in its natural environment. Other tourists seen next to the mammal also violated federal distance guidelines.
Sadly, harassment of sea lions at La Jolla Cove is fairly routine because of the mammals’ close proximity to tourists. (I live nearby and captured the images in the body of this post.)
ALSO: Poachers caught with bald eagle they had shot, intended to eat
In accordance with the Marine Mammal Protection Act, people are asked not to approach within 50 yards of seals and sea lions, but that happens almost daily.
Harassment, which is against the law, is an action that alter’s a mammal’s behavior. Tossing objects at an animal is one such action.
La Jolla Cove receives so many visits by tourists that enforcement of the MMPA, which is not a task for lifeguards, would be impossible short of erecting barriers to keep people off the the rocks and beaches.
Fortunately, the sea lions at La Jolla Cove and harbor seals at nearby Children’s Pool have grown accustomed to the presence of humans. But they should still be regarded as dangerous, unpredictable animals.
