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Oregon fishing village enlists fake whale to scare hundreds of sea lions off docks Oregon village enlists fake whale to scare sea lions off fish – but it flounders
(about 9 hours later)
Officials in a small Oregon fishing village have deployed a giant, motorized fake orca whale in their latest attempt to scare off hundreds of sea lions who have made the local port’s docks their new home. An effort to use a fake, life-sized orca to scare off hundreds of sea lions crowding docks off the Oregon coast ended at least temporarily on Thursday with the fiberglass creature belly-up after it was swamped by a passing ship.
City leaders in Astoria, Oregon, say they are hoping the 32-foot-long faux whale will succeed where such tactics as electric mats and brightly colored beach balls placed outside the docks have failed. Still, Port of Astoria executive director Jim Knight said the sea lions briefly “got deathly silent” when the orca sailed into view. That was just before it started listing and tipped over on Thursday night.
“It really is a sign of how desperate the measures are that we’re taking to try and solve this problem,” the port of Astoria’s executive director, Jim Knight, said. “We simply don’t have the financial resources to build barriers. We have no choice but to look for very creative and low cost solutions.“ Once the 32ft killer whale replica is dried out and repaired, “There’s a chance we’ll do it again” on Friday, Knight said.
The sea lions usually show up in Astoria, a town of about 10,000 people on the Columbia River about 70 miles (113km) northwest of Portland, in the winter and then leave as the weather warms. Earlier on Thursday, officials had to find a replacement motor for the fake orca – actually a boat with a driver inside – that belongs to a whale-watching business. It was brought overland from Bellingham, Washington.
But this year they came in February and didn’t leave, officials say, and hundreds now sleep and sit on the docks around the clock, eating fish that sustains the local community. Sea lions have become a nuisance to Astoria and commercial fishermen because they damage docks, prevent boaters from using the docks and eat lots of salmon.
Researchers believe warming water in the Pacific Ocean has sent the sea lions that have not previously been known to reside on the Columbia River, north in search of food, Knight said. Knight took the day’s adventure in stride, calling it “a learning experience”.
“There are thousands of jobs that are at risk in our community,” Knight said of the threat to the commercial and sport fishing operations if the sea lions stick around or increase in numbers, adding that they also create a lot of noise and foul the water. Once equipped with the replacement motor, the fake orca “was going fairly well and then a cargo ship came by and its wake swamped the whale,” he said. “Our crew from the port had to go rescue the operator so he didn’t drown.
“They basically create 10 to 30 pounds [4.5 to 13.5kg]of poop a day,” Knight said. “You can’t make this stuff up,” he added.
Already stocked with a life-sized orca whale that is a licensed boat in the state of Washington, the Island Mariner, a whale watching cruise company from Bellingham Washington, drove its fake promotional whale to Astoria. He estimated 1,000 people showed up to watch, applauding as the bogus whale took to the water.
But the operation hit a snag early on Thursday when the artificial whale’s motor flooded, Knight said. As for the sea lions, there may have been an effect beyond their brief silence. Knight said there were 400 to 500 sea lions Thursday morning and perhaps 200 by Thursday night, when the fake orca was tied up to the docks where they rest.
As of Thursday afternoon the device, which emits whale songs, was being fixed and officials were planning a sneak attack on the sea lions on Thursday night. “They probably think it’s dead now that it’s belly up,” he said.
The plan is to play the orca’s song that signals to other whales it has killed a sea lion and it’s dinner time. The hope is that it scares the sea lions and prompts them to leave, forever, he said. Knight wishes the orca had had a chance to play its recordings of real killer whale calls, especially the “call to dinner” – usually emitted in the wild after they kill a sea lion or seal.
The original plan called for the orca to be driven around in the waters near Astoria, free of charge to the port. It can also tow a smaller, 7ft-long orca behind it.
In recent weeks, the Port of Astoria has tried creative ways to keep the animals away, including installing beach balls, colorful tape, chicken wire and electrified mats. Of those, Knight said the beach balls have been the least expensive solution with initially the best results.
“There’s something about flashing, moving bright colors that [sea lions] don’t like,” he said. “They jumped off the docks.”
He said the beach ball idea could be revived.
The sea lion population has increased dramatically in recent decades. The animals are protected under the Marine Mammal Protection Act, but the law includes provisions allowing for deterrence of the sea lions to protect private property.
The Astoria sea lion population is dwindling at the moment as many of them follow the salmon migration north. However by mid-August, they’ll be back in force, Knight said.