Overview
- Marine Mammal Center staff continue to monitor the animal at the pier and report he appears healthy.
- Experts estimate the adult male weighs roughly 1,500 to 2,000 pounds, far heavier than typical California sea lions.
- Chonkers is a Steller sea lion, a larger, paler species that is rarely seen at Pier 39 and is more common farther north.
- Pier 39’s harbormaster says the floats were not built for a 2,000‑pound animal, and crews use wooden herding boards to guide him from boat slips with no injuries or damage reported.
- Videos of the sea lion lounging and leaping onto crowded floats have gone viral and drawn big crowds to the waterfront.