A sea lion acted “unhinged” and “deranged” when it attacked a surfer off the coast of Oxnard, California in Ventura County. The surfer, RJ LaMendola, survived with a nasty chunk, however he mentioned the “haunting” expertise left him hesitant to get again within the water after 20 years of browsing. Wildlife consultants say the ocean lion was possible sick from domoic acid poisoning, which might make the animals unusually aggressive.
“As we speak, I endured probably the most harrowing and traumatic expertise of my 20yrs of browsing—an encounter that left me shaken to my core,” LaMendola wrote in his March twenty first Fb submit. “It began as an unusual session, simply me and my board, about 150 yards from the shore, driving the waves in solitude [. . . ] till, out of nowhere, a sea lion erupted from the water, hurtling towards me at full pace. Its mouth gaped large, tooth flashing, and its eyes locked onto me with an unsettling ferocity.”
LaMendola goes on to element the harrowing ordeal. The ocean lion bit into him and tried to yank him off his board, and it wouldn’t relent because the surfer tried desperately to get again to shore. When he did get to shore, LaMendola drove himself to the emergency room and tried to course of what had simply occurred and why.
Sea Lions Are Sick From Poisonous Algae Blooms
When he contacted the Channel Islands Marine Wildlife Institute to report the incident, LaMendola mentioned: “They’re presently coping with a wave of incidents throughout Santa Barbara and Ventura County involving sea lions and different marine animals affected by Domoic Acid Toxicosis. It’s a neurological situation brought on by toxic algae blooms, and it’s driving these creatures into aggressive, uncharacteristic conduct. The ocean lion that attacked me wasn’t simply appearing out—it was sick, its thoughts warped by this poison coursing via its system.”
Sea lions are naturally curious, playful animals, and sea lion assaults on people are uncommon underneath regular circumstances. Sadly, it’s not “regular circumstances” proper now alongside the California coast. Dangerous algae blooms have poisoned “scores” of California sea lions and dolphins which can be stranding on seashores within the space, according to NOAA.
Animals with domoic acid toxicosis may be unpredictable, and sadly, uncharacteristically aggressive, as was the case with the ocean lion LaMendola encountered that day within the ocean. Fortunately, LaMendola mentioned in a follow-up submit that he’s therapeutic effectively and appears ahead to getting again within the water when the blooms clear up and he can safe a brand new wetsuit.
See LaMendola’s unique Fb submit concerning the incident, adopted by a information report highlighting the story, right here: