To quote California’s own Pier 39, everyone’s going bonkers for Chonkers. The chubby celeb is going viral for his size as he hangs out on San Francisco’s K-Dock—but he wouldn’t be there if not for an earthquake.
After the Loma Prieta quake hit Northern California in October of 1989, colonies of sea lions started to arrive on the Pier 39 K-Dock, much to the dismay of the tenants. The barking pinnipeds ate large quantities of fish in the area and contributed to a new and heightened sense of noise pollution, acting as the driving force for the Marina Staff to contact The Marine Mammal Center. The MMC is an organization dedicated to rescuing and rehabilitating marine animals, but in this case, they actually suggested for the mammals to stay at the marina. Many of the tenants ended up leaving or at the very least, pulled their boats further away from the marina.
These migrations are technically called “haul outs,” and are described as when sea lions look for land to rest, play, and mate in between bouts of hunting and swimming. Sea lions are opportunistic feeders, which means that instead of feeding on just one type of prey, they will eat almost anything. California sea lions are commonly regarded as the smartest out of any sea lion species (of which there are seven). They are also the fastest out of all seals and sea lions when grouped together, reaching top swimming speeds of up to 25 miles per hour.
As of last week, (March 3rd to 9th) Chonkers has returned to the hunt, completing his haul out. His fans can still visit San Francisco and see other fat sea lions, but the K-dock is hoping that he’ll be back next year for more gluttonous glory.