Pier 39 Sea Lions Vanish?


I took both the photo and video about a year ago down at Pier 39

Just as quickly as they appeared twenty years ago along the docks @ Pier 39, our beloved sea lions have vanished overnight. What use to be a flock of hundreds of barking lions are now down to a mere half dozen. It's been a mystery and everyone is scratching their heads. The sea lions feed on herring during the Winter months and due to a shift in water currents etc... it is believed that their food source has vanished leaving them to find their food elsewhere. It has been reported in recent months that many swimmers and fisherman in the area do not like the lions treading on their space. As a result, no one really knows what has happened to our major source of tourist dollars.

The sea lions are one of the top tourist attractions in San Francisco and attract people to Pier 39 all year long. If not for the sea lions, especially during the Winter months, how will retail survive and more importantly, what is a tourist to do?

January 15th will be the twentieth anniversary of when the lions appeared at Pier 39. Pier 39 has a party planned to celebrate the anniversary. Will the guests of honor show up?

You can read the full story here.


Here is the latest from ABS News:

Click http://abclocal.go.com/kgo/video?id=7197528

Comments

DoanLegacy said…
Love looking at the sea lions! They are very interesting to watch, especially in your video!
Joanne Olivieri said…
Icy, it is so empty without them there :(
Secondary Roads said…
Pity about your sea lions. I love the banner photo.
Joanne Olivieri said…
Chuck, thanks, I wanted to do something a little different on the blog for the New Year.
Icy BC said…
Jo,
I remembered seeing the sea lions at the dock in Monterey Bay, and they barked, which sounded so scary!

Your header is so beautiful.
Margie and Edna said…
Margie: That blasted banner scared me nearly to death!
I love sea lions. Please let us know when they come home. I wish them well.
Unknown said…
I saw that on the news the other day. I hope they come home soon.

On another note, I love your new header. Looks great!
betchai said…
oh, wonder where they are now, Jo? hope they will show up for the anniversary.
Rick (Ratty) said…
Wow. I guess times change. There must be some place to find them. A twenty year habit must be hard to break.
Joanne Olivieri said…
Icy, We are used to the barking here though it's very quiet now. Thanks for the compliment on my header it's one of my photoshopped creations.

Margie, l0l! That's why I put it there :D I will definitely post updates on our sea lions. I just hope they are okay. I don't want them to miss their party in a couple of weeks.

Thanks Diane, what surprised me is that they made the National news over this :) Then again, that's why tourists head out to Pier 39

betchai, Some think they are in Oregon because thousands just recently showed up there. I don't know but I hope they show up for the party too. I was going to go down there but there's no point if they don't come home.

Ratty, that's what I'm thinking. After twenty years, to just vanish is weird. I worry because there have been threats against them by local swimmers and fishermen so I just hope they are okay. There's really know way of knowing where they are :(
AVCr8teur said…
I heard about their disappearance, but I do hope they pop back in again. So sad to see such an icon at Pier 39 disappear like. If only they can talk to let us know what is going on. At least you captured them on video and in pictures.
they look really so cute..well i havent seen them yet in real...
Joanne Olivieri said…
Karen, It really is so sad and quiet down there. I hope they come back soon or at least for their party.

Priyanka, They are adorable to see them in person. Thanks for stopping by.

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