Sea lions on the Galapagos Islands are like street dogs in Latin America or street cats in Mediterranean cities; they roam the streets (and ocean for the sea lions) freely, and share space with humans and other creatures. In order to protect and maintain the wild nature of Sea Lions, humans cannot touch them, as tempting as it is. They, also, don’t touch humans. They often come very close, especially under water, but they’re expert swimmers and will miss you at the very last second. The younger ones are very playful, even across species. They often engage iguanas and other creatures by nozzling them or pulling their tails. They try to engage humans too but all we can do is back up and take pictures.
Sea Lions live in large colonies and often have some beaches dedicated to them. Males (with a noticeable bump on their head) are territorial. They defend their territory with loud barks and mate with the females within their area…until another dominant male dethrones the king and takes over, typically every 3 to 5 days.
The gestation period for Sea Lions is 9 months, which can be extended by up to 3 months if the conditions are not favorable, for example, scarcity of food. The mother and pup identify each other by scent and sound. Human touch can be fatal to the young pups because it changes the scent of the animal. This may cause its mother to reject it and leave it to die.
One of my favorite activities in the Galapagos is to watch Sea Lions. Their playfulness is very entertaining and it’s easy to get lost in their world. Under water they’re even more fun as they’re playing in 3 dimensions and I’m right there with them… forgetting about the rest of the world.
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Unconditional Love 