So, a sea lion pup wanders into a seafood restaurant and settles down in a booth ….. It sounds like the beginning of a bad joke, but last February, a malnourished 8-month old sea lion pup appeared in a booth in The Marine Room, an upscale waterfront restaurant in La Jolla, California. The pup had found its way in from the beach through a door left open by a cleaning crew. Chef Bernard Guillas said that the female pup climbed into a booth “almost like she wanted to have dinner.” And perhaps she did, as the pup was seriously malnourished and dehydrated, weighing only 20 pounds (9 kg), less than half the normal size for its age.

The sea lion pup, which has been given the nickname Marina, wasn’t served at the restaurant but was instead taken to SeaWorld’s Animal Rescue Center. Since then Marina has been nursed back to health. She gained 25 pounds and proved she could find food for herself. Ths week Marina and several other rescued sea lions were returned to the wild.

Recovered sea lion returns to ocean after being found in seafood restaurant

Thanks to Irwin Bryan for contributing to this post.