Sea lion dies after being shot in Orange County. Officials offer $20,000 reward

A wounded sea lion found at Bolsa Chica State Beach this summer died from a gunshot to its back, according to officials who are now offering a $20,000 reward for information about the shooting.

The 2-year-old male sea lion was discovered between two lifeguard stations at the Orange County beach on Aug. 7, NOAA Fisheries announced in an Instagram post Wednesday. The Pacific Marine Mammal Center retrieved the animal, but it died the next day. An examination revealed that the sea lion had a fresh gunshot wound in its back.

The animal showed obvious signs of distress when it was discovered around 2 p.m. by a person walking on the beach, according to Pacific Marine Mammal Center vice president of conservation and medicine Alissa Deming.

"It was having difficulty breathing, and looked very lethargic," Deming said. "It was very clear that it was in need of rescue."

The sea lion was spooked, went back into the water and returned back to the beach around two hours later, Deming said. That's when rescue team members with Pacific Marine Mammal Center were able to get to the wounded animal.

Law enforcement agents at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration are asking for the public's help in finding those behind the sea lion's demise. A reward of up to $20,000 is being offered for any information that could lead to a civil penalty or criminal conviction of the person or persons responsible.

Typically, the Pacific Marine Mammal Center encounters six to 12 marine animals with gunshots a year, Deming said. The Pacific Marine Mammal Center conducted a necropsy — an animal autopsy — and confirmed that the cause of death was the gunshot. The bullet punctured the animal's lung and caused other damage inside the roughly 60-pound sea lion's body, Deming said.

"We see a lot of pretty sad things when it comes to indirect impacts people have on marine mammals, like entanglements and ingestion of fishing gear, and a decrease of prey availability," Deming said. "But knowing that people are out there doing this to these animals is just really disappointing and obviously illegal."

The sea lion was a relatively young adult or a sub-adult, and at 2 years old would be more like a 10-year-old human, Deming said.

An NOAA spokesperson said the bullet that was retrieved from the sea lion's body is still being analyzed.

The federal Marine Mammal Protection Act prohibits harassing, hunting, capturing or killing sea lions and other marine mammals. Violators can face criminal penalties and fines of up to $34,000, along with the forfeiture of any vessel involved in the incident.

Anyone with information about the shooting can call NOAA’s enforcement hotline at (800) 853-1964. Dead or stranded marine animals can be reported to the West Coast Marine Mammal Stranding Network at (866) 767-6114.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times .