Friday May 13, 2022
The Sacramento Bee —
Your eyes aren’t playing tricks. That honking blob that looked like a sea lion near Tower Bridge — it probably was one.
Sightings of the marine animals often make their rounds on Sacramento social media, and can send the average user down a rabbit hole (if you’re new, or younger than, say, 35 you may also be excited to learn about Humphrey, the vagabond humpback whale).
But why are these creatures — who typically spend their time on the coast — appearing so far from the ocean? The answer’s rather simple: There are more of them, and they’re hungry.
The sea lions spotted in Sacramento are usually adult males who have left their home in the Channel Islands, off the coast of Los Angeles and Santa Barbara, according to National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration spokesman Michael Milstein.
According to past reports, sea lions have been spotted on both the Sacramento and American rivers.