A surfer in Southern California had a terrifying encounter with a sea lion off Oxnard, USA Today reported . Although the attack seemed to come out of nowhere and ended with the surfer seeking treatment at a hospital, it wasn’t the animal’s fault, as experts later revealed.
What happened?
RJ LaMendola was peacefully surfing and wasn’t aware of any animals nearby when a sea lion approached him about 150 yards offshore.
“Out of nowhere a sea lion erupted from the water, hurtling toward me at full speed,” he wrote on Facebook. “Its mouth gaped wide, teeth flashing, and its eyes locked onto me with an unsettling ferocity.”
LaMendola tried swimming away, dodging, fighting off the sea lion’s attacks, and keeping the board between him and the animal, but it still managed to bite him severely on the left buttock…