Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs

Stop the selfies at La Jolla Cove

What's the right distance from a baby sea lion?

Social distancing isn't working too well.
Social distancing isn't working too well.

It's sea lion pupping season at La Jolla Cove, right alongside beach re-openings and the human haul out – and social distancing isn't working too well.

At least not between humans and pinnipeds.

Ellen Shively, Seal Society of San Diego volunteer, spent Sunday carrying a sign to help remind people to keep their distance, and witnessing the chaos.

That day she helped rescue a yearling that had seven fish hooks in its mouth. She saw a crowd force three pups off a cliff. The pups couldn't swim out of the crack so the moms kept pushing them up on the rocks, she says.

One mother seal sprang into action. "I actually saw her dive from the top after her pup fell."

Sponsored
Sponsored

Watching pups struggle

For over two hours, people who drove the pups off the edge watched, laughed and took pictures, she says.

"There were people all over the sand literally chasing the mother sea lions and their pups, throwing sand in the pups' faces and on and on. It was hard to watch."

So what's the right viewing distance from a baby pinniped? Or a 1,000 pound bull?

The answers aren't clear from the signs posted at most entrances to the cove, which only warn against touching animals and staying back, and the Sierra Club Seal Society wants the city of San Diego to step back in.

Pups not old enough to swim driven from rocks

San Diego's Parks and Recreation Department commissioned the Marine Coastal Management Plan-La Jolla in 2017 to address the growing number of human/pinniped encounters, and signs were one recommendation.

The 91-page report tackled the odor issues that prompted an unsuccessful lawsuit by business owners against the city. In the end, the pinnipeds prevailed. Sort of.

Sign on way down to rocks

The signs are often ignored, even with splashy wording like "No Selfies with Seals!" People still touch and pet the animals, and block their path to the ocean or beaches, advocates told the San Diego Environmental Committee last week. The situation is "woefully under-managed."

Shively blamed the use of small print, placed far above eye level, and wordy messaging. Some signs are faded. There are few international signs.

And who would know it's pupping season? The signs don't say. When people go down the stairs for a closer view, they may startle the animals, possibly causing the separation of mothers and newborns or raising the risk of a pup drowning.

"There were people all over the sand literally chasing the mother sea lions and their pups."

The situation is "dire and dangerous" for both people and animals, they warned, recommending a specific distance be added to the signs, and that a ranger and docent be there daily. Currently, there's only one ranger to monitor La Jolla Cove, La Jolla Point, and Boomer Beach.

Although sea mammals are federally protected from harassment by the Marine Mammal Act – which is enforced by the National Marine Fisheries Service – as well as municipal codes, tickets are rare.

Robyn Davidoff, Sierra Club Seal Society docent suggested that NOAA, the Coastal Commission, and the city of San Diego come up with a reasonable but protective distance guideline.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration – NOAA Fisheries – recommends a viewing distance of at least 150 feet. Shively says the best viewing spot for sea lions is the sidewalk in front of the Woman’s Bridge Club at La Jolla Point (over 400 feet).

Sierra Club Seal Society draws the line at a minimum of 20 feet.

If it's a selfie, you're way too close.

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Coyote tracks in frail San Diego avocado grove

Second place winner in Reader neighborhood writing contest
Next Article

Gonzo Report: Stinkfoot Orchestra conjures Zappa at Winstons

His music is a blend of technical excellence and not-so-subtle humor
Social distancing isn't working too well.
Social distancing isn't working too well.

It's sea lion pupping season at La Jolla Cove, right alongside beach re-openings and the human haul out – and social distancing isn't working too well.

At least not between humans and pinnipeds.

Ellen Shively, Seal Society of San Diego volunteer, spent Sunday carrying a sign to help remind people to keep their distance, and witnessing the chaos.

That day she helped rescue a yearling that had seven fish hooks in its mouth. She saw a crowd force three pups off a cliff. The pups couldn't swim out of the crack so the moms kept pushing them up on the rocks, she says.

One mother seal sprang into action. "I actually saw her dive from the top after her pup fell."

Sponsored
Sponsored

Watching pups struggle

For over two hours, people who drove the pups off the edge watched, laughed and took pictures, she says.

"There were people all over the sand literally chasing the mother sea lions and their pups, throwing sand in the pups' faces and on and on. It was hard to watch."

So what's the right viewing distance from a baby pinniped? Or a 1,000 pound bull?

The answers aren't clear from the signs posted at most entrances to the cove, which only warn against touching animals and staying back, and the Sierra Club Seal Society wants the city of San Diego to step back in.

Pups not old enough to swim driven from rocks

San Diego's Parks and Recreation Department commissioned the Marine Coastal Management Plan-La Jolla in 2017 to address the growing number of human/pinniped encounters, and signs were one recommendation.

The 91-page report tackled the odor issues that prompted an unsuccessful lawsuit by business owners against the city. In the end, the pinnipeds prevailed. Sort of.

Sign on way down to rocks

The signs are often ignored, even with splashy wording like "No Selfies with Seals!" People still touch and pet the animals, and block their path to the ocean or beaches, advocates told the San Diego Environmental Committee last week. The situation is "woefully under-managed."

Shively blamed the use of small print, placed far above eye level, and wordy messaging. Some signs are faded. There are few international signs.

And who would know it's pupping season? The signs don't say. When people go down the stairs for a closer view, they may startle the animals, possibly causing the separation of mothers and newborns or raising the risk of a pup drowning.

"There were people all over the sand literally chasing the mother sea lions and their pups."

The situation is "dire and dangerous" for both people and animals, they warned, recommending a specific distance be added to the signs, and that a ranger and docent be there daily. Currently, there's only one ranger to monitor La Jolla Cove, La Jolla Point, and Boomer Beach.

Although sea mammals are federally protected from harassment by the Marine Mammal Act – which is enforced by the National Marine Fisheries Service – as well as municipal codes, tickets are rare.

Robyn Davidoff, Sierra Club Seal Society docent suggested that NOAA, the Coastal Commission, and the city of San Diego come up with a reasonable but protective distance guideline.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration – NOAA Fisheries – recommends a viewing distance of at least 150 feet. Shively says the best viewing spot for sea lions is the sidewalk in front of the Woman’s Bridge Club at La Jolla Point (over 400 feet).

Sierra Club Seal Society draws the line at a minimum of 20 feet.

If it's a selfie, you're way too close.

Comments
Sponsored
Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Not enough Readers in Mission Beach

Mayor Todd Gloria's skin color
Next Article

Mid-range fleet scoring bluefin limits off Ensenada

Rockfish to open at all depths April 1st (no foolin’)
Comments
Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed Big Screen — Movie commentary Blurt — Music's inside track Booze News — San Diego spirits Classical Music — Immortal beauty Classifieds — Free and easy Cover Stories — Front-page features Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts Feast! — Food & drink reviews Feature Stories — Local news & stories Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore From the Archives — Spotlight on the past Golden Dreams — Talk of the town The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it Letters — Our inbox Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news News Ticker — News & politics Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated Poetry — The old and the new Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers Reading — The hunt for intellectuals Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds SD on the QT — Almost factual news Sheep and Goats — Places of worship Special Issues — The best of Street Style — San Diego streets have style Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves Theater — On stage in San Diego this week Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads Your Week — Daily event picks
4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
Close

Anchor ads are not supported on this page.