Malnourished sea lions are being rescued in record numbers along the Southern California coast.
SeaWorld San Diego officials said they have brought in more than 530 sea mammals since the first of the year. That is the most rescues in one year since 1983. The overwhelming majority of the rescued animals have been malnourished sea lions.
"We went several weeks where we were rescuing in double digit numbers — 12, 14, 17. We've rescued as many as 20 in one day," SeaWorld San Diego spokesman David Koontz said. "And we're seeing around six, seven, eight sea lions being rescued on a daily basis over the last several days."
Related: SeaWorld Continues Temporary Shut Down Of Sea Lion Show
Federal officials said young sea lion pups aren't getting enough to eat from their moms and they are striking out on their own too early. SeaWorld officials hope to return all rescued animals back to the wild after they've been rehabilitated.
"(We) take care of any illnesses or diseases that it might have and then return that healthy animal back to the ocean," Koontz said.
A handful of rescued sea lions were released off the coast of San Diego on Friday, Koontz said.
This is the second major sea lion die off in three years. Federal officials declared a similar situation in 2013 an unusual mortality event.
