Wandering Sea Lion Rescued from Petaluma Parking Lot

A young sea lion that made headlines after wandering far inland into Petaluma has been safely rescued and is now recovering at the Marine Mammal Center in Sausalito.

The sea lion first appeared on June 18 lounging on a floating dock along the Petaluma River at Steamer Landing Park. While it’s not unheard of for juvenile sea lions to venture into freshwater, experts say it’s less common in the Petaluma River compared to other waterways like the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta.

After eluding rescue attempts in late June, the 3–5-year-old female was finally captured on July 5—after she was spotted waddling through the parking lot near the Petaluma Premium Outlets.

“It was very active and alert,” said Giancarlo Rulli of the Marine Mammal Center. “It was also actively foraging on sustainably caught herring that our experts and volunteers were feeding it, which were all good signs.”

Now in the care of the Marine Mammal Center—the world’s largest marine mammal hospital—the sea lion is being monitored for overall health and potential exposure to domoic acid, a naturally occurring toxin found in some shellfish.

If all goes well, the Center hopes to release her back into the wild soon, likely at Point Reyes National Seashore.

Officials are reminding the public to keep a distance of at least 150 feet from marine mammals and to report sightings of distressed animals to the Center’s hotline at (415) 289-SEAL.

Turns out even sea lions sometimes take the wrong exit.