Sealion diving is kind of an interesting endeavor in Alaska because the
sealions are big Stellar sealions that typically are any where from 700 or 800
pounds all the way up to well over a ton. They get to become a rather massive
critter. Sealions are commonly seen here in the winter months because the young
really like to go off to explore, cavort and have fun, so it’s real common to
go out to places like the Shrine of St. Terese, Sunshine Cove or Amalga Harbor
in Juneau, Alaska and have the sealions show up doing their thing.
Often time they are very curious. They are very gregarious animals and like to
come over to say “hi”. Sometimes they get a little frisky and get into a mode
where they are swimming, playing, cavorting and doing all kinds of stuff.
Sometimes they get real frisky and grab your fins, giving you a little shake,
other times they give you a little bump on the shoulder. If they get real
comfortable with you they will come over, settle down on the bottom and go nose
to nose with you. They will actually touch your nose with their nose, so here
you have this big, huge wild animal that comes over and gets very close and
personal.
Alaskan Sealion Photo by John Lachelt
Another really interesting thing that sealions like to play fetch. Fetch is an
odd thing with sealions because they will reach down, grab a small rock, and if
they don’t eat it, the sealions will bring it over, drop it in front of you
then hover off and look at you. What they want you to do is pick the rock back
up and throw it out to them then they will pick up the rock, bring it back over
and drop it back in front of you. It’s kind of a weird fetch thing. They are
kind of like a big mutant dog, but they are kind of cute.
Sealions do eat rocks. (Tani: They eat rocks?)Yes, I even have video of them
eating rocks then yakking them up (Tani: Oh lovely!). Apparently they have a
fair amount of rocks that they eat for either buoyancy, ballast or perhaps to
grind up shellfish parts and things like that which they may swallow whole I am
sure.
"...the next thing I know I’ve got this big sealion,
this big lone bull and he looks at me and then he starts swimming around and gives
me a couple of body checks..."
Most of my sealion encounters are pretty benign, their really are a lot of fun.
They do speak a very distinct body language. You will see the female come in,
approach and invert into an upside down “S” shape with their body, they will
hang upside down and look at you.(Tani: Do the males hang upside down?) No, the
big males go right straight up, drop their pectoral fins, drop their head a bit
and what they are really asking you is if you are a threat and if you respond
in kind, what you are telling them is “Yes, I am a threat and your mother wears
army boots.”
The next thing that happens is the males will get a little testy and actually
hunker down, start swimming around you really fast in an erratic behavior and
start barking at you underwater, shaking their head, swimming at you with their
mouth open, blowing bubbles, showing you their large canine teeth which are the
size of baby carrots which is kind of impressive, but all you have to do is
just go to a horizontal position again, keep your hand tucked in to yourself
and that tells the sealion that I’m ok, your OK, and the next thing you know is
they are all swimming around having a good time.
Alaskan Sealion Photo by John Lachelt
I had one really interesting sealion experience. It was Jim Rapay, Sean Edwards
and I diving out at sunshine cove, this was in kind of in late spring day,
April or so. Visibility was pretty good, nice sunny day. We dropped down
underwater doing our underwater checks and started heading of to the little
islands in Sunshine cove, and the next thing I know I’ve got this big sealion,
this big lone bull and he looks at me and then he starts swimming around, gives
me a couple of body checks and meanwhile I am trying to ignore him, staying
horizontal, keeping our hands tucked into ourselves, and then he starts doing
these little body check things and then he starts pulling on my fins and then
he swims up face to face and starts doing the nose touches and he is really
kind of getting on my nerves. Every time I turn and look this sealion is
hovering over me, or hovering next to me or hovering around me so we finally
get down to 90 feet and he finally takes off and I was relieved.
Come to find out that they swim down to 1800 meters. I’m thinking 90 feet and
I’m thinking he was gone. An interesting fact about sealions. Anyway, the
sealion is gone; we are swimming through the sea pen forest, seeing some of the
giant nudibranches as big as footballs and they are down there eating the big
three feet tall, bright red and orange seapens, seeing some of those things,
picking up a bunch of nice dungenous crabs and actually having a pretty nice
day.
We get back up to our 15 foot decompression stop and we are all just kneeling
on the bottom I look over at Jim & Sean all of a sudden their eyes just filled
up their masks! They just were really bug eyed! I’m kind of sensing at this
point the sealion is back. So as I am sitting there minding my own business, I
am looking around. I didn’t see him, but the guys were pointing and they're
pointing in back of me, so I just said I am not going to react to the sealion.
But anyway, the next thing I know I have this big chin resting on my shoulder
and two giant pectoral fins wrapped under my arms, and I am thinking the sealion
is going to do the nasty to me, and I am thinking, "thank God I am wearing a full
bodied condom!" And then I am thinking, "No, this is not happening!" I can’t
believe this whole thing, so I reached up for my console and smack him on
the nose a three times, and he looks at me like, "How could you?" Then
he swims away.
Then we get out of the water and of coarse Jim and Sean are just roaring with
laughter because they were not violated, I was.
This was an actual event encountered by John Lachelt of Channel Dive Center in
Juneau Alaska. You can visit there website at channeldive.com and if you have
any questions you can email us at 2dive4@ptialaska.net
