It's summertime in the northern hemisphere and many people are turning to beaches for some fun in the sun.
One bonus of the beach is a chance to see wildlife in their natural habitat.
Beachgoers can watch dolphins frolicking in the surf, see seabirds soar overhead or run for their lives from libidinous 800 pound sea lions.
Yeah, that last one...
Seems it's mating season for California sea lions and some males—which can weigh from 600 to 850 pounds and reach 8 feet in length—didn't take kindly to humans visiting their favorite hook-up spot while they were courting the ladies.
Mayhem ensued as a result.
The incident occurred Friday at La Jolla Cove in San Diego, California. TikToker Charlianne Yeyna—@favortown on the social media platform—recorded the scene from above to share online. It seems SoCal locals—both human and sea lion—get a bit testy about interlopers in the cove.
Yeyna captioned the clip:
"These sea lions made my day yesterday."
In a later interview with NBC San Diego, Yeyna said:
"I started recording because it was really funny to watch, for me to see all these tourists getting blown away by these giant sea lions."
Yeyna stated it began when a woman got within four feet of one of the sleeping behemoths to take a picture. The cove has numerous signs warning visitors not to approach the sea lions which are frequently seen lounging on the beach.
People were equal parts amused—by the sea lions—and annoyed—at the humans—on TikTok.
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@favortown/TikTok
Twitter weighed in as well.
People were definitely #TeamSeaLion there too.
Sea lion expert Eric Otjen told the Associated Press:
"This behavior is not uncommon at all."
"The reason why the video has gotten like 10 million views is because everybody is running like Godzilla is chasing them."
According to Otjen, mating season is from May to October. Both males and the much smaller females can be aggressive during mating season or when they have pups.
People are advised to stay at least 50 feet away from the marine mammals.
No injuries were reported in Friday’s San Diego sea lion take back the cove event.
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