Patrols seek to stop hefty sea lions from crushing docks and sinking boats in Orange County harbors

Sea lions congregate on a buoy near Dana Point Harbor in Dana Point on Wednesday, Dec. 13, 2017. (Photo by Leonard Ortiz, Orange County Register/SCNG)Sea lions take over a boat in Dana Point Harbor. (Register File Photo)A dock in Dana Point Harbor that has been damaged by sea lions in Dana Point on Wednesday, Dec. 13, 2017. (Photo by Leonard Ortiz, Orange County Register/SCNG)Patrotic colored inflatable tube men have appeared at Orange County Harbor Patrol’s dock at Dana Point Harbor as a way to keep sea lions away. (Photo by Nick Agro, Orange County Register/SCNG)Some of the docks in Dana Point Harbor have been attaching a product called Seal Stop to prevent sea lions from getting up on the docks in Dana Point on Wednesday, Dec. 13, 2017. (Photo by Leonard Ortiz, Orange County Register/SCNG)Boaters in Dana Point Harbor Sea place plastic buckets on their boats and docks to discourage the sea lions from climbing on them. Photographed in Dana Point on Wednesday, Dec 13, 2017. (Photo by Leonard Ortiz, Orange County Register/SCNG)A boater in Dana Point Harbor Sea placed plastic deck chairs next to their boat to discourage the sea lions from climbing on the boat and dock. Photographed in Dana Point on Wednesday, Dec 13, 2017. (Photo by Leonard Ortiz, Orange County Register/SCNG)Sea lions congregate on a buoy near Dana Point Harbor in Dana Point on Wednesday, Dec. 13, 2017. (Photo by Leonard Ortiz, Orange County Register/SCNG)Sea lions hang out on a buoy off the coast of Dana Point on Tuesday morning. (Photo by Nick Agro, Orange County Register/SCNG)Sporting patriotic stars and stripes, an inflatable tube man dances on the Orange County Harbor Patrol’s dock at Dana Point Harbor as a way to scare sea lions away. (Photo by Nick Agro, Orange County Register/SCNG)A line of inflatable tube men guard the Orange County Harbor Patrol’s dock at the Dana Point Harbor from sea lions. (Photo by Nick Agro, Orange County Register/SCNG)Sea lions hang out on a buoy off the coast of Dana Point on Tuesday morning. (Photo by Nick Agro, Orange County Register/SCNG)Curious sea lions look at Boys & Girls Club children sailing past as they leave Dana Point Harbor for a two-hour excursion. (Photo by Mindy Schauer, Orange County Register/SCNG)Sea lions crowd a dock in Dana Point Harbor in Dana Point Dec. 4, 2017. (Photo courtesy of Orange County SheriffÕs Harbor Patrol)A sea lion lounges near a fake coyote meant to scare it away from a boat in Newport Harbor. (Photo courtesy of Orange County Sheriff Harbor Patrol)Sea lions lie on dock near Dana Wharf. Several docks here have been repaired costing the Orange County thousands of dollars. (Photo courtesy of Danawharf.com)Sea lions crowd a dock in Dana Point Harbor in Dana Point Dec. 4, 2017. (Photo courtesy of Orange County SheriffÕs Harbor Patrol)Sea lions crowd a dock in Dana Point Harbor in Dana Point Dec. 5, 2017. (Photo courtesy of Orange County SheriffÕs Harbor Patrol)Sea lions crowd a dock in Dana Point Harbor in Dana Point Dec. 5, 2017. (Photo courtesy of Orange County SheriffÕs Harbor Patrol)Sea lions crowd a dock in Dana Point Harbor in Dana Point Dec. 5, 2017. (Photo courtesy of Orange County SheriffÕs Harbor Patrol)Show Caption of Expand

The sea lions that lounge on boats in Dana Point and Newport Beach harbors — damaging and sometimes sinking them — aren’t fazed by the snarling fake coyotes or weathered wind dancers meant to scare them away.
So it should come as no surprise that yelling and hosing off the sea lions makes them even less inclined to move.
That’s a lesson James Lenthall learned as he watched a man deal with a sea lion sitting on the swim step of his boat in Dana Point Harbor. The man screamed at the animal, and when it wouldn’t budge, sprayed water at it.
“The sea lion growled and refused to leave,” said Lenthall, president of the Dana Point Boaters Association.
One sea lion on a sea step might be a nuisance. But when there are multiple animals, each weighing 600-plus pounds at eight feet long, Harbor Patrol deputies are often called to keep boats afloat.
“Their combined mass is sufficient to force the vessel far enough underwater to allow the ocean to either wash over the transom or come in through the scupper holes,” said Harbor Patrol Sgt. Larry Packard. “Left uncorrected, it is just a matter of time before the vessel is at the bottom of the bay.”
While tourists in Dana Point and Newport Beach may be thrilled to see sea lions at the harbors, boaters and charter operators don’t have the same warm and fuzzy feeling. They blame the hefty marine mammals for breaking docks, damaging boats and causing messes. And now they are struggling to come up with a plan that isn’t harmful to the protected animals but can provide some relief to mounting expenses.
In January, a boat under construction sank after a group of sea lions sat on it, said Newport Beach Harbor Patrol Deputy Josh Baugh.
“The fittings weren’t on the boat, so just a little bit of weight caused it to sink,” Baugh said.
Fake coyotes have become the choice for some boaters — and the city of Newport Beach — to deter sea lions from climbing aboard. In some cases it has worked, but not always.
Since July, Newport Beach’s harbor management has responded to 64 calls for service regarding sea lion issues, according to Newport Beach Assistant City Manager Carol Jacobs.
The County of Orange, which manages Dana Point Harbor, has spend thousands of dollars on repairs and deterrent measures. Private boaters, too, have paid to refurbish boats.
“It’s an ongoing battle,” said Doug Whitlock, general manager of Dana Point Marina’s East Basin. “We’ve had three of four docks with severe damage; each dock costs $4,000 to $5,000 to repair. … We thought last winter we got a handle on it.
“In the 39 years I’ve been here we didn’t have a problem, but now it’s an issue.”
This summer, OC Parks brought in air dancers — tall, brightly colored wavy figures powered by air — to chase sea lions away.
“They worked really well for a while,” Packard said. “But as the air dancers became weathered and worn, the sea lions went back up to them and slept next to them.”
Officials estimate there are about 20 resident sea lions in Dana Point. Many are drawn to the bait barge — a quick way to get snacks. Others follow fishing vessels in and out of the harbor to snag leftovers. Once full, they find cozy spots to nap.
The most recent deterrent at Dana Point Harbor is an old standard — yellow five-gallon buckets attached to the dock and weighted down with sand and/or water.
Whitlock’s team has been running around the East Basin installing them on docks and boats when boaters call. There are at least 300 buckets in that area alone.
On a recent day, at least 10 buckets set up on the Harbor Patrol dock had been pushed aside by a dozen sea lions that bowed the dock with their weight.
Larry Phoenix, of Newport Beach, operates Rampage Sportfishing and docks his 42-foot Hatteras sport fisher at the end of Dana Wharf.
“The first night I put the buckets up, they were knocked off the next day,” he said.
With renewed access, the sea lions have not only crushed the new dock, but have cost Phoenix potentially thousands of dollars to fix discoloration on the side of his $500,000 boat.
“It’s been terrible, they poo all over the side where they lay and that stuff doesn’t come off easily,” he said. “We had to scrub for two hours. If you do it enough, you have to have it re-covered. Anyone who has a really nice boat is getting frustrated.”
Phoenix’s solution has been a device called Seal Stop, a product pending patents by a Santa Ana-based company. It uses rotating tennis ball-sized spinners to deter marine mammals from lounging on surfaces where they are installed.
“I stopped them but it cost me over $1,000,” he said.
Phoenix was thinking about spending $4,000 to do the whole dock. Instead, he came up with a makeshift system where he hammers nails into the dock and connects fishing line as a barrier.
“You’ve got to get them off the docks, he said, adding that a possible solution would be to construct an actual resting place for the sea lions somewhere in the harbor.
Lenthall often hears stories from his boater group. And he’s had his own encounters on his paddle board. Two large sea lions almost knocked him off the board and once a baby sea lion hopped on board with him.
“As annoying and messy as these sea lions can be, most of us accept them as our harbor partners, or neighbors that we just have to accept and get along with,” Lenthall said. “Most of us have a love-hate relationship with them.”
While Packard’s deputies work to control sea lions on their own dock, they also travel the harbor looking for other places where sea lions are congregating — particularly on boats.
If they find a boat in trouble, they can quickly evict the unwanted marine mammals and start to pump out the sea water.
“If we get the vessel back to (the surface) without having to dive on it or use lift bags, we count it as a vessel assist not as a sunk vessel,” Packard said.
A sunken boat can spill fuel and chemicals into the ocean, damaging the marine environment, he added.
“Deputies will find the owner and educate them on ways to reduce the chance of their boat becoming a flooded submarine,” Packard said. “This becomes a high-stakes game of musical chairs played out wherever sea lions and boaters coexist.”
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Source: Oc Register