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'Like a horror movie': Woman recounts sea lion attack in Monterey Bay · Best of: Features

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  Like a horror movie, woman recounts sea lion attack in Monterey Bay.
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  Written by Olivia Hardin. This article is being read by an automated
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  voice generated by Everlett. A woman survived a sea lion attack this
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  week while paddleboarding in Monterey Bay. On Tuesday, around eight AM, Capitola
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  resident Heather Gray was paddleboarding between Capitola Wharf and Private's Beach by
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  Pleasure Point when a sea lion attacked her, NBC Bay Area, KNTV
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  first reported. It was like a horror movie, Gray told the outlet.
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  The sea lion grabbed her hair and bit her arm, hand and
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  feet, according to the San Francisco Chronicle. The Chronicle and SF Gate
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  are both owned by Hearst, but have separate newsrooms. She was eventually
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  able to get back on her paddleboard, but the sea lions attempted
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  to follow her to the shore before swimming away. She was treated
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  at an urgent care clinic with antibiotics, a tetanus shot and a
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  rabies shot. Monterey Bay has been flagged for its high levels of
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  demoic acid, a poison caused by algae bloom, SF Gate previously reported.
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  The elevated levels have caused dozens of Sea
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  lions already this year to get sick and become disoriented, leading to
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  more rescue efforts. One sea lion died at Chrissy Field earlier this
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  month, likely from demoic acid poisoning. Because of demoic acid levels, the
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  California Department of Fish and Wildlife in June released an advisory on
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  commercial fishing for anchovies and sardines, which are a large part of
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  sea lions diet. Sea lions don't drink water like we do for
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  hydration, Giancarlo Rulli, a spokesperson for the Marine Mammal Center, told SF
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  Gate in August. They get all the hydration from the food that
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  they eat. They're basically receiving large doses of this neurotoxin, with no
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  away to flush the toxin out of their system. An expert told
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  the Chronicle it's unclear whether the sea lion was poisoned since it
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  was not examined. Some of these animals may be sick or injured,
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  others may be curious, others showing territorial or natural aggression in pursuing
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  nearby food resources, Rooley told the Chronicle. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric
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  Administration recommends people stay at least fifty yards half a football field
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  away from sea lions, both on land and in the water.