tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9028430.post5071717040633867920..comments2023-10-29T06:18:30.962-07:00Comments on READ MY OPINION (because you're entitled to it): WHO WILL SPEAK FOR THE SEA LIONS?Unknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9028430.post-28547307080608146962008-04-02T10:34:00.000-07:002008-04-02T10:34:00.000-07:00Thanks for getting this right, Paul and Sammy. Sea...Thanks for getting this right, Paul and Sammy. <BR/><BR/>Sea lions have always been on the Columbia, and are not harmful to the salmon. As a large predator, they are part of the balance of nature. It is dams, and over-fishing by humans that are causing the decline of the salmon populations. Killing sea lions is no answer, and will do nothing to help the salmon. It could even cause more harm for the salmon, since sea lions also prey on lampreys and pike minnow, thus keeping them in balance. (Both species otherwise prey on salmon, and/or outcompete with them over food.)<BR/><BR/>Just one more note: The California sea lions being targeted with this plan are not the ones that are eating the white sturgeon. You are right to point out that sea lions and seals have always come up into the river, eating these fish. But just to stop a rumor being propagated by fishermen, the proposal to kill sea lions will have no impact at all on sturgeon predation, because it is Steller's sea lions that are eating the sturgeon, not California sea lions. Since Steller's are endangered, they are not subject to the plan.<BR/><BR/>So fishermen who would support the plan to kill sea lions to save salmon OR sturgeon are clearly misguided, because these sea lions are not causing the problems with the fish. It's us.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9028430.post-61256370308761412102008-01-30T18:20:00.000-08:002008-01-30T18:20:00.000-08:00Sea lions and harbor seals have always come into t...Sea lions and harbor seals have always come into the Columbia River where they follow salmon and smelt runs upstream. Sea lions were hunted to very low population levels in the late 19th - early 20th century, but have rebounded in numbers since enactment of the federal Marine Mammals Protection Act of 1972.<BR/><BR/>I haven't seen any estimates of how many sea lions came upriver historically, but the situation is different now with Bonneville Dam creating a point where salmon have to congregate to get into the fish ladder and over the dam. Sea lions have discovered this free meal situation - they are smart animals.<BR/><BR/>The parallel would be if McDonalds started putting happy meals on a table outside one of their stores with a sign saying "Free Lunch" and then started shooting people who came by to eat. <BR/><BR/>Don't get me wrong - this is a serious situation for salmon runs - or can become serious. My point is that the plight of salmon in the Columbia River is much more complex than sea lions eating fish.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9028430.post-7670762827278044012008-01-28T08:28:00.000-08:002008-01-28T08:28:00.000-08:00Proud of you Mr Paul. What has been causing the se...Proud of you Mr Paul. What has been causing the sea lions to "migrate"?Bob ghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13771197740387949051noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9028430.post-55786608978618761142008-01-25T10:37:00.000-08:002008-01-25T10:37:00.000-08:00One reader, in an e-mail, asked what I think the s...One reader, in an e-mail, asked what I think the solution is to the sea lion - salmon issue. I don't know, other than to say that the basic causes of salmon decline in the Pacific Northwest had nothing to do with sea lions, and everything to do with human activities. A colleague of mine attended a meeting this week of the Lower Columbia Salmon Recovery Team, a large group of agency and other biologists who are developing recovery plans for the various at-risk salmon species. He reported, with great disappointment, that the recovery team is purposefully NOT considering the effects of continued human population growth in the region or the effects of global climate change - because they don't know how to address these issues. When it comes to the potential to recover these species, need I say more?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com