Steller Sea Lion - Interactions With Humans

Interactions With Humans

Steller sea lion were hunted for meat and other commodities by prehistoric communities everywhere their range intersected with human communities. Aside from food and clothing, their skin was notably used to cover baidarkas and kayaks. A subsistence harvest on the order of 300 animals or less continues to this day in some native communities in Alaska.

Historically, the sea lion has had only very slight commercial value. For example, in the 19th century, their whiskers sold for a penny apiece for use as tobacco-pipe cleaners. Their penises are considered to be aphrodisiacs in some forms of traditional Chinese medicine.

Steller sea lions are sometimes killed intentionally by fishermen, as they are seen as competitors and a threat to fish stocks. Killing sea lions is strictly prohibited in the U.S, Canada and Russia, but, in Japan, a fixed number are still removed annually, ostensibly to protect their fisheries.

In recent years, Steller sea lions have been known to enter the Columbia River estuary and feed on white sturgeon, several salmon species and rainbow trout, some of which are also listed under the U.S. Endangered Species Act. They enter the Columbia River primarily in the late winter and spring, occasionally going as far upstream as Bonneville Dam. Though not as abundant as the California sea lion, they are still a concern for those agencies charged with managing the fish populations. Since the Steller sea lions are themselves protected under the Marine Mammal Protection Act, managers are compelled to use nonlethal deterrence methods, such as rubber bullets and noisemakers. Deterrence by the public is strictly forbidden.