Sea Lions Crashing the Party

Last Thursday, a sea lion decided to grab a bite at a hotel’s restaurant in Jaco Beach. Within the Puntarenas province on Garabito, this is the second time last week that a sea lion decided to pop up in the Central Pacific area. Locals and tourists have no complaints, though!

However, sea lions aren’t all that common in Costa Rica, so locals and tourists are wondering why they’re now here and what they may be doing.

Why the Sea Lions Have Arrived

Perez Reyes, a Biologist, and researcher from the University of Costa Rica and the National Training Institute had this to say on the matter:

“They are young and curious, just like all younger forms of life. The ones showing up are probably doing so because they have decided to move from their home turf. They have probably been getting carried far away from their original home islands by the current, so that could explain this.”

Not only are sea lions joining the party, but apparently a couple of years ago a few penguins were spotted arriving from the Galapagos Islands.

Perez believes that the arriving sea lions are actually Galapagos Sea Lions, which are a breed that is solely exclusive to the Galapagos Islands and the neighboring islands of Ecuador.

Time for Them to Return Home

Though people have gotten excited at the thought of more sea lions possibly arriving and maybe even beginning a population within these regions of Costa Rica, they are, unfortunate to some, going home.

Officials from the Environment Industry and the National Animal Health Service, or SENASA, of Costa Rica have taken the sea lions into custody to ensure that no harm will come to them. From what they’ve found, the sea lions are in great condition and will all be released fairly soon.

The officials have begun to take all sea lions being found to the National Coast Guard vessels in order to take them to specific currents that are most likely to take them back home again. More specifically, the current located approximately 10 miles off of the coastline, which is close to rest and food areas for the sea lions.

Will More Come?

It’s safe to say that the arrival of the few sea lions has been surprising, especially in the case of the sea lion that decided to enter the hotel restaurant and say hello to the customers and the staff.

image attribution

Andrew Makarik

to@welovecostarica.com

Andrew Makarik is the main editor of WeLoveCostaRica, a fan of this sunny country. He is also a loving husband and a has a lovely daughter. By being a devoted family man and the biggest Costa Rica fan, he wants to make more people feel at home there. WeLoveCostaRica unites people and helps them find new home or a new travel destination. This website is a friendly community where everyone can find not only information, but also new friends and travel pals. Andrew is also passionate about IT and programming, so he himself maintains a friendly atmosphere in this cozy environment of WeLoveCostaRica.com.