West coast see huge wash up of sick and starving sea lions

Marin Independent Journal - Officials with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration say about 940 sick and starving young sea lions have washed up on California beaches so far in 2015. That compares to about 225 sea lion strandings that officials normally would see between January and April.

Scientists say warmer coastal waters are forcing nursing mothers in the Channel Islands south of Santa Barbara to head out farther for food, leaving behind their young for longer than the normal two or four days. That means the young pups — about 8 months old — are leaving to look for food on their own, but many do not have the life skills to catch prey on their own.

“This is the first time in our history that we have had sea lion pups here this early in the 40 years,” said Dr. Shawn Johnson, director of veterinary science at the mammal center. “They were nursing on mom a few days ago and now they are here. They don’t have the skill to dive deep and catch fish.”