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NEWS > U.S.A. > SAN FRANCISCO SEA LION TURF WAR GETS UGLY
SAN FRANCISCO SEA LION TURF WAR GETS UGLY
October 8 2009
San Francisco, CA – For many people the Sea Lion is a cute and adorable animal. Seeing them on television and in zoos, few people ever encounter the animal in real life and in their natural habitat and even in those instances when they see them in 
passing they are a welcome anomaly. Of course like any animal living next to them is something entirely different and the fishermen and residents of San Francisco are finding out first hand just how un-adorable the animals can be at times.
A growing turf war in the San Francisco bay has pitted humans against sea lions for the first time in a long time with the 500 pound carnivores finally making progress against the human population. A combination of an especially strong breeding season and a renewed confidence by the animals has pushed the human population onto its heels, desperately trying to regain ground against the suddenly resurgent sea lion menace. Now the humans in the area are struggling to find ways to combat the menace with new tactics and new weapons now the priority.
“They take over berths and make it difficult for fishermen to get to their boats, and 
really make it hard for people to do their jobs. They are a menace and a serious danger, have new illusions about that and we have to find ways of dealing with them before they become too much a problem for us to deal with,” said Peter Dailey, Deputy Director of the Port of San Francisco to FOX News. “There are humane ways you can make their lives miserable. You can be like an noisy neighbor, you can turn on loud music, you can have lights flashing on them, you can hose them down. One way or the other we need to combat them before they begin moving inland. This isn’t an issue like the Nazi’s taking Stalingrad, not yet at least, but we must be aware that it could get to that level if we do not take proactive action.”
The sea lion contingent had no comment on the situation. It’s not clear if that was a result of a planned tactic or their inability to speak or reason at a high level.
“One bumped against me three times, then he went and nipped my little toe. It’s really scary and I think it's made us all a little bit more anxious about exactly where we will swim to. They are really big and really strong and we have to be careful where they are and where we are,” said a local swimmer. “I’m really afraid for the future and what it will mean for my kids. I grew up swimming in these waters and I want my children to grow up swimming here. We have to do something about them or that could be lost forever and all because of these animals.”
Sea lions are officially protected in the Bay area but are known to be susceptible to the traditional methods of death that destroy other animal pests, such as bullets and clubs.
“It has always been a challenge for the human animal when we come into contact with the natural world. Despite our incredible success as a species many animals still have
significant advantages over us when it comes to confrontations and the issue in San Francisco is no different than any other confrontation in the past,” said Scrape TV Zoology analyst Cambridge Walker. “This has routinely posed great problems for human beings and the situation with the sea lion. The biggest concern with the sea lion is its aggressiveness and how far they will be willing to go to achieve dominance over the Bay area. True they likely not stray far from the water but that may be enough to disrupt the human population and compromise their ability to live in the area. Many people rely on the Bay in order to make a living and that will be taken away by the sea lion if this trend continues. The best we can hope for I believe is some kind of truce between our two species, something that will be very difficult with sea lions unfortunately.”
The lack of hands and higher brain functions make it unlikely that the sea lions will be able to negotiate or sign any kind of armistice.
Mike Michaels, American Correspondent
NEWS > U.S.A. > SAN FRANCISCO SEA LION TURF WAR GETS UGLY
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