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Authorities investigate man seen harassing San Francisco sea lions
A man seen in a viral video drinking a beer and chasing away a colony of sea lions as he swam towards them at San Francisco's Pier 39 possibly broke the law. Marine mammals are protected by federal law.
SAN FRANCISCO - A video of a man harassing dozens of sea lions at Pier 39 in San Francisco has gone viral.
Posted to Instagram, the footage shows the man down a beer, do a backflip into the water, and chase dozens of sunbathing sea lions off their platforms.
"Let's get it," the person filming says laughing, as the sea lions bark and jump off the platforms. "Bro, bro, get back."
"Don’t mess with our sea lions like that," wrote someone in response to the video.
Many of the responses called for the man's arrest.
"Interesting how breaking the law is supposed to be funny?" wrote another. "The marine mammal protection act isn’t a joke…. We already are one of the main reasons these animals develop cancer, just leave them alone tf"
The Marine Mammal Center told KTVU they became aware of the video Saturday afternoon.
"Although the details surrounding this incident are very limited, including when it took place, our team at the Center immediately reported the video to NOAA Law Enforcement to investigate the matter due to the serious nature of this individual’s actions and will await the findings of their investigation," the MMC wrote regarding the incident.
They said it is illegal under The Marine Mammal Protection Act to harass or harm marine mammals and is punishable with fines and/or jail time.
KTVU also reached out to Pier 39 and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration regarding the video but has not heard back.