Remarkable Video Shows Tourist Hand Feeding Docile Wild Sea Lion

By Mark McConville

WATCH THE moment one lucky tourist handfeeds an excited sea lion pup a fish after it jumped onto the back of her boat.

The incredible footage shows the sea lion clamber onto the back of the woman’s boat before she pets and strokes it like a dog which elicits a satisfied look on the sea lion’s face.

The woman then rewards the sea lion for its good behaviour by feeding it a fresh fish which it happily gulps down.

The sea lion sticks around for some more cuddles before eventually diving back into the sea after one of its friends turns up.

The adorable video was taken in Cabo Sun Lucas, Mexico and shows maths professor and yacht broker Tracy Wollschlager (28), from Fort Lauderdale, Florida, USA, feeding the sea lion pup.

“The day of the video we were on our way in from Spearfishing and we had left over bait which we use to chum the water to attract the fish,” she said.

“There are four sea lions who are well known in Cabo for coming up to inboard (Diesel engine) fishing boats to grab a snack. Pancho, who is very well known, his “wife” and two pups. The sea lions in the video were said to be the two pups. They are adorable and I fell in love.

“When the sea lions came on the back of the boat the captain and first mate handed me the fish to feed them once they saw my level of extreme excitement. It was the highlight of my Cabo trip.

“You see me feeding this little guy who came on the transom of the boat looking for a snack. He was also loving the head rub. It was a beautiful connection that I made.”

Sea lions are sea mammals characterized by external ear flaps, long foreflippers, the ability to walk on all fours, short, thick hair, and a big chest and belly.

“I love the beauty in nature,” added Tracy.

“I think that an experience like this is something that I would of never thought possible. I personally don’t like zoos or any form of keeping animals in cages. So to experience something like this with a wild animal is truly an experience of a lifetime.

“Animals should be appreciated in their natural habitat. They should not be caged, or put in a tank for ‘viewing’.”