Rescuers Free Entangled Sea Lion

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Justin Viezbicke, NOAA West Coast Stranding Coordinator, attempts to disentangle the sea lion.
Justin Viezbicke, NOAA West Coast Stranding Coordinator, attempts to disentangle the sea lion.

Reports from the public noting the whereabouts of a young sea lion entangled in rope helped rescuers locate and free the sea mammal in the Dana Point Harbor Tuesday, April 4, says an announcement by the Pacific Marine Mammal Center.

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration West Coast Stranding Coordinator Justin Viezbicke, along with a three-person PMMC rescue team, worked together to free the animal from a thick rope that had been embedded around the sea lion’s torso.

The rescue boat was on stand-by monitoring the animal from the water as Viezbicke approached the animal from a dock. Using a special knife, he was able to successfully cut the rope and disentangle the animal, says the statement, noting the technique is commonly used during whale disentanglements.

The animal, believed to be a juvenile female, was first spotted about five weeks ago. Several prior attempts were made with the assistance of Dana Point Harbor Patrol, SeaWorld Rescue, and NOAA.

PMMC, the rescue center based in Laguna Beach, received daily calls from concerned visitors to Dana Point Harbor about the animal. “Because of the public and their reports we were able to establish a pattern of where and when she would haul out which was critical in the success of the rescue,” said Animal Care Coordinator Wendy Leeds. “We can’t do what we do without the public assistance in reporting animals.”

Though the state of California has banned gill nets, entanglement of whales, dolphins and turtles is a common occurrence. In 2008, an abandoned 4,000-foot gill net was located four miles off the coast of Southern California. The first 100 feet contained the carcasses and skeletons of 21 dead sea lions, a dozen cormorants, and several crabs, the statement notes, citing a 2013 report.

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