The Brief
- Sea lion sightings at Shilshole Marina have increased, attributed to hunting restrictions from the 1972 Marine Mammal Protection Act.
- Rising herring populations may be attracting sea lions, but no concrete data confirms this link.
- Experts say sea lions aren’t the main threat to local fish populations; human activity is the larger issue.
SEATTLE – They’re loud, a little stinky, and impossible to ignore.
“They cause a raucous out here,” said Jarrod Carr, a dock worker at Shilshole Marina. “They just bark. You can hear them from everywhere really.”
Over the last several springs, the barking of California and Steller sea lions echoes across Shilshole Bay, as the massive marine mammals haul out onto docks and breakwaters, much to the delight—or dismay—of onlookers.…