etd-EllingsonK-2499.pdf

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Content Growing up I was always fascinated by marine
mammals and collected every piece of infor-
mation I could get my young hands on. My
career goals shied from an aspiring whale
trainer to a journalist, but my obsession with
these sea creatures has stayed with me. As my
rst year of graduate school came to an end
the 2013 Unusual Mortality Event caught my
attention and soon became the topic of my
thesis.
I had the opportunity to shadow the rescuers
who were working front and center to save
the young California Sea Lions. ey told me
many stories from this event. Here are two
that demonstrate their dedication to helping
these animals.
SeaWorld, California’s southernmost rescue center was
a particularly unique case in this year’s unusual strand-
ing season. Because of their location so far south, they
rarely see the higher numbers of sea lion strandings
that Los Angeles and Orange County witness annually.
When the numbers of rescued sea lions climbed in
L.A. and O.C. SeaWorld oered help to these exhaust-
ed centers and took into their care some of the patients
from the San Pedro Marine Mammal Care Center.
By the time they taken in pups from surrounding
shelters, the UME moved south. ey now had to ght
to take care of the sea lions they had rescued as well as
those they had taken in to alleviate the burden from other centers.
SeaWorld
About Return to the Wild: e
Story of Number 74
e California Wildlife Center was known for rehabil-
itating land animals from surrounding areas. ey also
assist in rescuing stranded sea life and transporting them
to marine care centers.
Je Hall was responsible for the coordinating rescues
for the stranded pups. He recalled being inundated with
calls from surrounding beaches where they had been
washing up. He even made rescues by himself in the
middle of the night.
Although his center did not rehabilitate the sea lions,
oen times they would bring them in over night if sur-
rounding centers were too full. He and his team couldn’t bare the thought of the yearlings starving to death.
e numbers began to lower by fall of 2013 and the centers concluded the rehabilitation of the last patients
brought in by the event. is was when I met Number 74, a two-time stranded pup whose endurance and ght
for survival became the inspiration behind my thesis.
California Wildlife Center

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