Surfers chased out of water by sea lion, the latest in a string of aggressive behavior at California beaches

The situation at first seemed comical a cute little sea lion ruling the line up at the wild Wedge in Newport Beach where wave riders proved up earlier this week to take on beefy waves from the first south swell of the season At times the sea lion would join in on the fun bodysurfing a insufficient waves and playing in the surf like the others in the water It s not an remarkable scene the marine mammals are known for their playfulness while hanging out near surfers RELATED Why are sea lions attacking people in the waters off California s coast But there was something off about this one it would suddenly turn aggressive chasing the humans out of the water darting toward them The encounter occurred on April at the Wedge a popular surf spot on the east end of the Balboa Peninsula The sea lion spooked all the surfers and bodyboarders and was chasing them in an aggressive fashion revealed Brian O Rourke assistant chief lifeguard with Newport Beach Fire It went on for hours a local photographer videoing the scene of the frantic surfers exiting the water as the aggressive sea lion approached The aggressive sea lion in Newport Beach is held to be suffering from domoic acid poisoning a toxin affecting sea lions birds and dolphins throughout Southern California Community safety functionaries have been warning beachgoers to stay away from animals determined stranded on the beach because they can become aggressive Related Articles Tick-borne diseases skyrocket Protect yourself before it s too late Commercial salmon season is shut down again Will California s iconic fish ever recover New million high-tech ship arrives to unlock ocean mysteries Watch During Monday s quake elephants form alert circle at San Diego Safari Park What animal turned my car into a prickly pear pantry The domoic acid poisoning is concluded to be from toxic algae blooms which since late February have impacted a large swath of marine mammals which after eating contaminated fish become sick disoriented and often wash ashore Marine mammal rescue centers have been overwhelmed keeping up with the sickened animals that have stranded on beaches from Orange County to Ventura County Video footage shared by user DingoSaidSo shows a group of more than a dozen surfers at the Wedge on Tuesday rapidly paddling to shore as the sea lion follows not far behind In another clip the sea lion chases another surfer as he tries to swim away This could have been one of the wildest things I ve ever seen at The Wedge and I ve seen a lot of crazy things at The Wedge he wrote In an interview following the affair the photographer who did not want to be named stated he didn t realize the severity of the moment until he later learned about all the other aggressive sea lion incidents It was just hanging out bodysurfed a limited waves But anytime someone would get in the water it would go after them Then it would disappear it would go off and lose track and everyone would go back in the water he recounted Next then you know you d see everyone kicking into shore trying to out run it It was really kind of crazy At first it seemed harmless and funny but as he heard stories of other aggressive sea lion incidents he realized the severity of the situation State Parks Superintendent Kevin Pearsall explained there s been three reports of aggressive sea lions in Orange County two at Bolsa Chica State Beach and the preponderance severe at Crystal Cove on April In that matter a bodysurfer was bit by a sea lion other people and two lifeguards jumping into action to try and get the creature away from the victim a male in his s who was transported to the hospital It was very abrupt Pearsall explained Just like any animal you want to use extra caution around them especially if their behavior appears to be aggressive Admire the sea lions from afar everyone is inevitably curious about sea life but you have to be extra cautious because of the unknown domoic acid effects and how it might alter their behavior A surfer RJ LaMendola in Oxnard recounted an attack late March after a sea lion bit him and sent him to the hospital In updates on social media the surfer disclosed the attack has left him shaken and battling PTSD but he holds no anger toward the creature Pacific Marine Mammal Center workers captured the sea lion Screengrab courtesy of DingoSaidSo Youtube An aggressive sea lion chased surfers out of the water in Newport Beach the latest in a string of incidents spooking beachgoers across Southern California Screengrab courtesy of DingoSaidSo Youtube Pacific Marine Mammal Center workers captured the sea lion Screengrab courtesy of DingoSaidSo Youtube An aggressive sea lion chased surfers out of the water in Newport Beach the latest in a string of incidents spooking beachgoers across Southern California Screengrab courtesy of DingoSaidSo Youtube An aggressive sea lion chased surfers out of the water in Newport Beach the latest in a string of incidents spooking beachgoers across Southern California Screengrab courtesy of DingoSaidSo Youtube An aggressive sea lion chased surfers out of the water in Newport Beach the latest in a string of incidents spooking beachgoers across Southern California Screengrab courtesy of DingoSaidSo Youtube Show Caption of Pacific Marine Mammal Center workers captured the sea lion Screengrab courtesy of DingoSaidSo Youtube Expand I love nature especially our marine wildlife and I ve spent my life advocating for the ocean through my photography he mentioned Something s wrong I have been working with local scientists and news media doing my own research to understand what s causing this That sea lion wasn t itself likely poisoned by domoic acid from toxic algae blooms The Newport Beach photographer who captured the Wedge footage echoed those same thoughts I don t know if people understand the seriousness of the situation with these sea lions These kids didn t know he reported of the surfers at the Wedge They didn t know sea lions are biting and attacking people We can do a better job making this a serious issue It was gnarly hearing all these stories The toxic algae poisoning was in the last few days linked to a random sea lion attack in Long Beach where a teenage girl was bit several times while in the water swimming in a tryout for the local lifeguard cadet venture With Spring Break right now there s a lot of people on the water O Rourke noted We want to make sure people understand that the sea lions are sick and to keep a distance If you encounter a sick sea lion contact lifeguards or the Pacific Marine Mammal Center at - -