Sea Lions Shot Dead On Columbia River

Six Federally Protected Sea Lions Found Day After Three Elephant Seals Killed In California

(AP)  Six federally protected sea lions were apparently shot to death on the Columbia River as they lay in open traps put out to ensnare the animals. State and federal authorities are investigating.

The discovery came one day after three elephant seals were found shot to death at a breeding ground in central California.

On Sunday, the carcasses of four California sea lions and two Steller sea lions were found below the Bonneville Dam on the Columbia River on the border of Oregon and Washington.

The six animals found dead Sunday appear to have been shot by somebody on the Washington side during the night, said Brian Gorman, a spokesman for the National Marine Fisheries Service.

Two closed cages each contained the carcasses of two California sea lions and one Steller sea lion, he said.

Necropsies were planned for all the animals, and the area was being treated as a crime scene by state and federal agencies, Gorman said.

Investigators will try to determine whether there is any link between the animals killed Sunday on the Columbia River and the elephant seals killed Saturday near San Simeon in California, Gorman said.

Washington and Oregon have been granted federal authorization to capture or kill as many as 85 sea lions a year for five years at the base of the dam, where they feed on endangered salmon headed upriver to spawn.

Fishermen and American Indian tribes have pushed to protect the salmon and remove the sea lions, by lethal force if necessary, forcing a delicate balancing act by the federal government.

Seven California sea lions were trapped on the Columbia River starting April 24 after the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals approved their capture. One died during a medical inspection before being transferred to a marine amusement park.

The Humane Society of the United States has gone to court to challenge the authorization, with another hearing set for May 8. Until a judge rules, no animals may be legally killed.

Now, as authorities investigate the dead sea lions, all trapping will also be suspended, said Rick Hargrave, a spokesman for the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife who was at the scene Sunday.

"We're really shocked," said Sharon Young, a Humane Society spokeswoman, who learned about the sea lion deaths from a reporter.

"We're a nation of laws, and we should expect people to abide by them," Young said.

[acolton1]

The Humane Society of the United States, Sharon Young and the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife are all IDIOTS.

DO YOUR JOB AND PROTECT THE SALMON. IF YOU CANT DO YOUR JOB THEN FRACKIN QUIT AND THERE ARE HUNDREDS OF OREGONIANS WHO WOULD LOVE TO GET RIDE OF THESE RIVER VARMETS.

[acolton1]

Debra Simons, Asheville,NC

Or Google "Bonneville Dam Sea Lion Problem" and read about that.

[acolton1]

Debra Simons, Asheville,NC

I grew up in OREGON and I do not want to kill everthing under the sun. Google "Cascade Locks Sea Lions" and read about that. It might change your mind. Sea Lions have been proteted for over 30 years and there population is has exploded. If you go over to the Oregon, Washington coast you can count thousands and thousands of them out on the rocks. The Sea Lion population needs to be controled just like the deer population.

[acolton1]

I grew up in Oregon and Sea Lions Belong in the SEA or OCEAN and once they swim 100 miles up river to Bonneville Dam they are no longer SEA LIONS and should loose their protected status. Sharon Young you are an IDIOT, IDIOT, IDIOT DO YOUR JOB AND PROTECT THE SALMON. Whats wrong with Sea Lions Steaks, smoked jerkey and Sea Lion Meat Treats for the Dog. Sharon Young you are not qualified to have your job because you are not protecting the Salmon your a frackin Looser.

Shoot all Sea Lions in the Columbia River and Willamette River by Oregon City and the Falls. All Sea Lions by Bonneville Dam need to be shot and killed on asap.

[debrasimons]

all of you who advocate slaughtering of everything under the sun are so absolutely mindless as to be unreachable with anything such as compassion for other species than your own selfish, uselss existence.It is people who are ruining the Earth not sea lions and elephants...Debra Simons, Asheville,NC

[acolton1]

Here is the link then click on VIEW RESULTS

http://www.kgw.com/perl/common/surveys/display_full.pl?poll_id=18248&site=kgw&vaction=voting&thissite=kgw

[acolton1]

You want to see how jacked up the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife is. go to Google and type in "Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife snowball the deer" and read what a bang up job they did last year. EVERBODY AT THE Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife need to be fired and do some house cleaning for the Snowball ISSUE. It made everbody in Oregon Mad as hell at the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife. DO YOUR JOB AND PROTECT THE SALMON AND SHOOT THE RIVER VARMETS.

[acolton1]

Bio Diesel out of Sea Lion Fat how much would a gallon of that cost ? FANTASTIC IDEA.

7 down 500 To GO. Keep up the good work.

[acolton1]

There are so many sea lions if you go to the Oregon Coast and look out on the rocks there are thousand and thousands of them. You cant trap them and relocate them because they will just swim back to where the easy food was. Google it Type in Cascade LOCKS Seattle and read how much of a pest they are.

Fantastic IDEA LloydBest1, Sea Lion steaks, jerkey, dog food and dog treats, stew meat and I BET YOU CAN MAKE BIO DIESEL OUT OF SEA LION FAT. A whold new industry can be started. KILL THE DAM SEA LIONS IN THE RIVER DO YOUR JOB OREGON DEPARTMENT OF FISH AND WILD LIFE AND Sharon Young you IDIOTS. Protect the Salmon and shoot these varmets by Bonneville Dam and by the falls in OREGON CITY. I am glad somebody shot these Sea Lions the deserve the 5000 dollar reward for doing something that needs to be done.

[acolton1]

I grew up in Oregon and have see this first hand.

First of all Sharon Young your an IDIOT its people like that talk and talk and the wild salmon will be extinct in 10 years. YOU ARE NOT QUALIFIED FOR YOUR JOB. Sharon Young and the 9th Court do your JOB AND PROTECT THE SALMON.

When a "SEA" Lion leaves the OCEAN and swims up river it is no longer in the "SEA OR OCEAN" and sould loose its protection and should be SHOT. It''s a River Varmet and need to be killed on asap. How about Sea Lion steaks, jerkey, and I BET THAT SEA LION FAT will make good BIO DIESEL. IF ANYBODY wants to read what the Public is saying in Portland Oregon go to KGW.com, click on News and then Local News and at the bottom click on More Local news. SHOOT THE SEA LIONS IN THE RIVER AND SAVE THE SALMON. I am glad somebody finally took action and SHOT THESE PESTS.

[ahabdearab]

http://wdfw.wa.gov/wlm/sealions/questions.htm
Good job shooter! You should get an award. We have tried for years to legally take care of problem, but the bleeding hearts get in the way.

[rbailey31]

THE WORLD IS GETTIN MORE EVIL EACH PASSIN DAY ! HAVE YA NOT NOTICED !!!!!!!! BUNCH OF EVIL CRUEL COWARDS,EVIL SICK TWISTED PERVERTS, EVIL ABUSERS OF ALL KINDS,NEED I SAY MORE ? LOOK AT THE WORLD !!

[rf35]

LloydBest1, excellent idea. I bet they taste like chicken!

[lochlan-2009]

Just little cowards. Typical throughout the country with our youth and red necks.

[lloydbest1]

So, if sea lions are as numerous as acolton1 claims, and if they are eating salmon up faster than they can replenish their numbers...then why don''t we simply catch and eat sea lions instead? I have never eaten one so I don''t know how they taste, but this would be a solution to the salmon crisis we ought to consider.

[rf35]

kaiyo4u, the difference between the wolves and the sea lions is that the wolves are still genuinely endangered! The rants of a few backward, neocon hicks (including Idaho''s governor) don''t change that fact. The delisting of wolves...another addition to the long list of idiotic moves by the Bush administration. I guess Cheney prefers shooting wolves over shooting lawyers.

[bluestardad]

NATION OF LAWS!

WANT SOME KOOL AID?

THERE IS NOTHING DIFFERENT BETWEEN THE NAZI INVASION OF POLAND IN 1939 AND THE BUSHIT NEOCON INVASION OF IRAQ IN 2003!

START WAR CRIMES TRIALS NOW!

AMERICA STAND UP OR SHUT UP!

[irliberal]

Whoever is responsible should be shot. ''nuff said.

[kaiyo4u]

have a question for: kaiyo4u

So don''''t you think that the Sea Lion numbers have become out of control. Sleeping on Boats and Docks in California, thousands and thousands of them on the rocks off the coast. Sure Sharks and Killer Whales eat them but the are so many of them.

Posted by acolton1 at 02:46 PM : May 05, 2008

I think they are out of control and our own government is responsible for this outcome.
When a species is put on the endangered or watched list they are closely monitored. When the sea lion population started expanding much like our own population, they should have opened some sort of season on them at that time. Similar to what is going on with the wolves in Idaho.
Orcas are also very few in numbers. I would have loved to see this planet in the 17 and 1800''s.
They are the natural predators of sea lions and are very effective hunters.

Because the seals don''t affect us directly as the wolves do, we (I mean our society) tended give them less consideration than we would a land based predator.

Again, their numbers have greatly increased to the point of opening a season on them. I have watched them in the Colmubia and knew the reason they were there. The bite goes off no matter what you''re fishing for.
I think they may also be partially responsible for the decrease in the sturgeon stocks too.

[rf35]

II haven''t seen the sea lions personally, so I can''t address the sense of having them on the endangered species list. Makes no difference, anyway. If both are listed as endangered, both are entitled to protection. So how do you decide what to do when one endangered species is contributing to the decline of another endangered species? Tough choice.