--- description: An unprecedented 2,250 sea lions have been found stranded on beaches in southern California so far this year title: Unprecendeted Numbers of Sea Lions Beaching in California image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt033b2819990805f3/698786f63c16391ece45297a/143498240-1.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [U.S.](/section/us/) ## U.S. Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [Environment](/tag/environment/) ## Environment Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # The Number of Sea Lions Washing Up on Californian Shores Is Higher Than Ever by [Sabrina Toppa](/author/sabrina-toppa/) ## Sabrina Toppa Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Apr 7, 2015 9:05 AM CUT  Many sea lions sunbathing Many sea lions sunbathingRich Lewis—Getty Images/Flickr by [Sabrina Toppa](/author/sabrina-toppa/) ## Sabrina Toppa Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Apr 7, 2015 9:05 AM CUT Emaciated sea lions are [showing up](http://www.reuters.com/articleou/2015/04/06/us-usa-sealions-california-idUSKBN0MX1F120150406 "undefined") on beaches in Southern California at unprecedented rates, because rising sea temperatures have reduced the populations of sardines and squid that form their main diet. The National Marine Fisheries Service reports that a record-breaking 2,250 sea lions, largely young pups, have washed ashore in California so far this year. That’s double the number seen in 2013 (which was previously the worst winter season for the mammals) and 20 times the stranding rate over the same period during the past decade, Reuters reports. **_Read:_**[_Why Hundreds of Starving Sea Lion Pups Are Washing Up in California_](http://time.com/3714036/sea-lions-stranded/ "undefined") In March alone, 1,050 sea lions — the highest number recorded in a month — were stranded according to scientists tracking their rates at an agency of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. California’s rescue facilities have been overwhelmed by the surge, with teams working frantically to rehabilitate the starving animals. \[[_Reuters_](http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/04/06/us-usa-sealions-california-idUSKBN0MX1F120150406 "undefined")\] ### Photos: Inside a Hospital for California's Stranded Seals and Sea Lions  A California sea lion sits on the edge of a pool at the Marine Mammal Center in Marin County, Calif. on May 9, 2014. Corey Arnold for TIME  California sea lions swim and sit out in the sun while visitors look on at the Marine Mammal Center in Marin County, Calif. on May 9, 2014. Corey Arnold for TIME  Harbor seal pups wear plastic identification tags that help caregivers tell them apart at the Marine Mammal Center in Marin County, Calif. on May 9, 2014. Corey Arnold for TIME  Herring breakfasts are organized and labeled for each seal and sea lion at the Marine Mammal Center in Marin County, Calif. on May 9, 2014. Corey Arnold for TIME  A harbor seal pup wears a plastic "hat tag," used to identify individual animals at the Marine Mammal Center in Marin County, Calif. on May 9, 2014. Corey Arnold for TIME  A malnourished elephant seal pup looks outside a pen at the Marine Mammal Center in Marin County, Calif. on May 9, 2014. Corey Arnold for TIME  Volunteers tube-feed a malnourished harbor seal pup at the Marine Mammal Center in Marin County, Calif. on May 9, 2014. Corey Arnold for TIME  A volunteer restrains an elephant seal pup while the animal is fed through a tube at the Marine Mammal Center in Marin County, Calif. on May 9, 2014. Corey Arnold for TIME  A shaved patch on the back of a harbor seal shows where blood was drawn during an admit exam at the Marine Mammal Center in Marin County, Calif. on May 9, 2014. Corey Arnold for TIME  Seals and sea lions released back into their natural habitat are added to annual graduation posters at the Marine Mammal Center in Marin County, Calif., May 9, 2014. Corey Arnold for TIME  Researchers perform a necropsy on a California sea lion that died of malnutrition at the Marine Mammal Center in Marin County, Calif. on May 9, 2014. Corey Arnold for TIME  Dr. Shawn Johnson, Director of Veterinary Science, listens to the lungs of a young sea lion under anesthesia at the Marine Mammal Center in Marin County, Calif. on May 9, 2014. Corey Arnold for TIME  A California sea lion pup undergoes surgery for a lymph node abscess at the Marine Mammal Center in Marin County, Calif. on May 9, 2014. Corey Arnold for TIME  Students on a field trip learn what to do if they find a stranded seal on the beach at the Marine Mammal Center in Marin County, Calif. on May 9, 2014. Corey Arnold for TIME  Siobhan Rickert, 18, has been a volunteer at the Marine Mammal Center for four years She is one of a dedicated network of 1,100 volunteers who help run the facility in Marin County, Calif., May 9, 2014. Corey Arnold for TIME  An elephant seal pup lies in an enclosure at the Marine Mammal Center in Marin County, Calif. on May 9, 2014. Corey Arnold for TIME  The Marine Mammal Center sits where the U.S. military once had a missile site outside San Francisco, in the Marin Headlands, Calif., May 9, 2014. Corey Arnold for TIME ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3773442/sea-lions-stranded-california-climate-change/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3773442/sea-lions-stranded-california-climate-change/"},"headline":"The Number of Sea Lions Washing Up on Californian Shores Is Higher Than Ever","datePublished":"2015-04-07T09:05:05.000Z","dateModified":"2026-05-11T04:49:40.592Z","description":"Rising sea temperatures mean less food for the mammals","url":"https://time.com/3773442/sea-lions-stranded-california-climate-change/","keywords":["Environment","California","animals","climate change"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt033b2819990805f3/698786f63c16391ece45297a/143498240-1.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Sabrina Toppa","jobTitle":"","url":"https://time.com/author/sabrina-toppa/"}],"articleSection":"U.S.","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt033b2819990805f3/698786f63c16391ece45297a/143498240-1.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Sea lions","caption":"Sea lions","creditText":"Rich Lewis—Getty Images/Flickr","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/us/","name":"U.S."}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/environment/","name":"Environment"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/3773442/sea-lions-stranded-california-climate-change/","name":"The Number of Sea Lions Washing Up on Californian Shores Is Higher Than Ever"}}]}] ```