An adventurous sealion has made its way back into the ocean after spending four days trapped on land dehydrated and hungry.
The sea creature was first spotted around 2am on August 31 running down a road in southeast Alaska, the chief of the Sitka Volunteer Fire Department told Anchorage Daily News.
A bemused driver recorded video footage of the marine mammal making his way down a darkened street and rescue staff in the area were quickly notified.
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The rogue sea lion on a resident's front deck, after the 1,700lb male waddled away from Sitka Harbor, in Sitka, Alaska and became stranded
The Steller (or northern) sea lion is the largest member of the family Otariidae, the 'eared seals,' which includes all sea lions and fur seals
Police, firefighters and scientists, above, were all involved in the effort to get it safely back to the ocean after it waddled out of the water and got lost
The stranded 1,700lb male Stellar sea lion was first spotted sitting by the side of a road in a a residential area by a bewildered motorist
Officials from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Alaska Marine Mammal Stranding Network, the Sitka Police Department, and firefighters tried to usher it to sea on Saturday.
Dave Miller, chief of the Sitka Volunteer Fire Department told Anchorage Daily News: 'It started taking off … went down, oh, about halfway to the water, with us sort of pushing it along with the hose,' Miller said. 'And all of a sudden, it decided "I'm done with this," and it went into the woods.'
By Saturday afternoon, the animal had been left alone to rest, Miller said. 'You don't want to put too much stress on it,' he said.
On September 2, scientists tweeted: 'NOAA is asking the public to clear the area in Sitka where a male Stellar sea lion is in distress, and is hiding in the woods; the incident is drawing onlookers.
'Please, for your own safety and the well-being of the animal, if you are in the area, leave.'
Police, firefighters and scientists were all involved in the effort to get it safely back to the ocean after it waddled out of the water and got lost.
Volunteer firefighters sprayed water on the sea lion, to try and coax it back to the ocean - to no avail
But this method ended up scaring the sea lion, which then tried to make an escape
The sea lion started heading for the woods to escape from the large group trying to help him
The Steller (or northern) sea lion is the largest member of the family Otariidae, the 'eared seals,' which includes all sea lions and fur seals.
Local law enforcement cautioned drivers in the area and started the delicate process of trying to coax the sea lion back to the ocean using a hose.
But their efforts were unsuccessful because the animal had become stressed and dehydrated.
On September 3 - four days after the sea lion was first spotted - rescuers made the decision to sedate it and transport it back to Sitka Harbor.
The dehydrated creature then took refuge under trees, prompting the above tweet from NOAA Fisheries for members of the public to 'stay clear' of the area
The mammoth creature was knocked out by a NOAA vet using a dart and rolled onto the barrel of a digger, before being placed on the back of a pick-up truck.
NOAA spokesperson Julie Speegle said the snoozing sea lion was given medication to counteract the sedatives and was carefully monitored in the ocean after its release.
Despite its ordeal, the mammal was munching on a fish moments after jumping into the harbor's waves from the University of Southeast Alaska boat ramp.
A decision was made to sedate the mammoth sea lion, and roll him onto the front-end loader
He was taken directly to the ocean, where scientists kept a close watch on him
After a four-day effort, the sea lion was successfully returned to the ocean in Sitka Harbor
Speegle said: 'We tried to coax the sea lion in the right direction towards the water with a fire hose.
'It worked for a little while, he was going the right way, but when he got to a road, he just veered into the woods.
'He's an adult male and weighs about 1,700lbs so there was no moving him manually.
'At this point he was tired and dehydrated.
'We decided to let him calm down; he was frightened and confused. He seemed stressed because obviously he was looking for the ocean.'
He spent Sunday night under the cover of the woods, 'but he wasn't budging', Speegle said.
'On Monday, our vet came down and at 1pm they managed to sedate him using a dart.
'It was then that they were able to use a front loader and a truck to transport him back to the harbor.
'We watched him for a few hours to make sure everything was okay, but the first thing he did was eat a fish so that was a really good sign,' Speegle added.
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Fisheries experts watched as he ate his first fish. The video of his release, top, was filmed by Cindy Bonner Duncan
Stellar sea lions feed on cod, herring, pollock and salmon, along with octopus and squid.
Sitka Volunteer Fire Department, which sprayed water on the creature, posted a video of its return to the ocean on Facebook.
Local residents were happy to see the sea lion had been successfully rescued, with one person commenting: 'Lucky! Stay away from the killer whales.'
Scientists involved in the rescue said it was unclear why the sea lion had ventured so far from the shore, but NOAA is keeping a close eye on the adventurous animal.
Speegle said: 'We collected some scat for analysis to check his overall health and we fitted him with a satellite tag so we can track his location.
'We are involved in a lot of rescues but this situation was out of the ordinary for sure.'
Link hienalouca.com
https://hienalouca.com/2018/09/06/a-stressed-sealion-spent-four-days-on-land-before-being-rescued-and-returned-to-the-ocean/
Main photo article An adventurous sealion has made its way back into the ocean after spending four days trapped on land dehydrated and hungry.
The sea creature was first spotted around 2am on August 31 running down a road in southeast Alaska, the chief of the Sitka Volunteer Fire Department told Anchorage Daily ...
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Dianne Reeves US News HienaLouca
https://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/09/05/11/4FB8F54100000578-6133863-image-a-12_1536142605115.jpg
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