Sea Lions: Maybe We Should Stop Trying to Save Them?

We noted last week the recent infestation of sea lions spilling over down at the piers, and this week's SF Weekly has a piece about efforts by Sausalito's Marine Mammal Center to rehabilitate injured and malnourished sea lions -- efforts which are, kinda, aiding the overpopulation. Writer Ashley Harrell points to the fact that sea lions have traditionally been used by environmentalists as "charismatic megafauna," i.e. the kind of cute, endearing animals who can serve as the public face for a preservation cause and rally support via their adorable little faces.

But Harrell speaks to a number of people who don't so much like the sea lions -- like Bay swimmers who've been bitten by them -- and those pragmatist/Darwinists who feel like malnourished sea lions ought to be left to die because the weaker animals are not going to survive in the long run when the environment can't support the current population as it is.

We're going to avoid taking a side here because, well, they sure are goofy and cute! But yes, they do stink and there sure are a lot of them this year!