Sea Lions Thwart Salmon, NW Wildlife Managers

Wildlife managers have used fireworks, traps, rubber buckshot and even underwater percussion devices to keep sea lions away from snacking on endangered salmon in the Northwest


But some pinnipeds remain unfazed, and they contributed to a 61 percent increase in salmonid consumption at Bonneville Dam earlier this year, according to an Army Corps of Engineers report.

In an analysis released Sept. 16, the Corps reported sea lions gobbled up more than 4,700 salmonids near the dam from Jan. 1 to May 31, about 2.1 percent of the overall run.

That is up from 2,954 in 2013, though it is slightly below the record consumption years of 2008-2010.

The loss prompted the Corps to call for the removal by trapping or lethal means of about 30 California sea lions, compared with the 15 captured .... http://www.ect.coop/editors-pick/sea-lions-still-thwart-salmon-wildlife-managers/73885