Rehabbed sea lions make beeline into ocean in Redondo Beach

Four young sea lions are back in the ocean Wednesday in Redondo Beach after they were rehabilitated by Marine Mammal Care Center .

A crowd gathered at the beach to cheer on the sea lions as they made a beeline back into the ocean. John Warner with the Marine Mammal Care Center told KNX News’ Karen Adams how he knows the sea lions are ready when they don't hesitate to go back to the ocean after being released on the sand.

The sea lions had blood work, weight checks, behavior checks, and live fish tests done before being released.

Two of the mammals had fishing lines and hooks in their system and the other two were malnourished before being picked up for treatment.

The work isn’t done – the care center is still caring for other sea lions that haven’t been released yet.

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“We've been at max capacity almost the entire year. We've been releasing animals, quite a few, so we're down to 40 now and those animals will be released here in the next two months,” Warner said.

This is the first time sea lions were released in Redondo Beach. Warner said the care center is trying to release the mammals in as many Los Angeles locations as they can.

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