Sea lion rolling stone

The barking sea lions that lounge on the bell buoy at the entrance of Newport Harbor have always been a highlight of any tour for Eric Stallcup’s guests. The boat captain has been giving tours of the harbor to tourists and locals for almost 21 years with the Fun Zone Boat Co.

“They’re out there 99.9% of the time — everybody comes to see the sea lion,” Stallcup said.

But Stallcup spotted an unusual looking sea lion perched on the buoy last week that marine scientists say would be more at home off the coast of Alaska than in Newport. The odd-looking sea lion stuck out like a sore thumb next to the run-of the mill California sea lions Stallcup usually sees.

“I see the sea lions a lot and what was really astounding about this one was its light color and he had kind of a longer snout and a square head,” Stallcup said.

The boat captain photographed what he and others believe to be a Steller sea lion, an animal that typically inhabits an area between the Kuril Islands and the Sea of Okhotsk in Russia to the Gulf of Alaska in the north, stretching down to Año Nuevo Island off central California. If confirmed by federal officials, the sighting could be the most southerly sighting of the Stellar sea lion ever documented, said Dennis Kelly, professor of marine science at OCC.

“It would be like seeing a polar bear walking around in Southern California,” Kelly said.

Steller sea lions are much larger than the typical California sea lion, and it’s quite easy to tell the two species apart, Kelly said. Steller sea lions are typically pale yellow or reddish in color, while California sea lions are usually dark brown.

Stallcup’s wife, a former student of Kelly’s, contacted him about the photographs of the unusual looking sea lion and asked him to take a look. Kelly is convinced the animal is indeed a Steller sea lion, although he’s not quite sure how or why it ended up off the coast of Newport.

“I assume he swam,” Kelly said. “I don’t think anyone would have pulled up in their SUV and gave him a ride.”

The sea lion might have followed a school of squid down the coast, Kelly said.

“When animals move, they’re typically looking for food,” he said.

Federal fishing officials are working to verify the Steller sighting, said Joe Cordaro, a wildlife biologist for the National Marine Fisheries Service, who examined Stallcup’s photographs of the animal Monday.

“Based on it’s light coloration, there’s a good chance that’s what it is,” Cordaro said.

The animal also could be some sort of mix between a California and Steller sea lion, Cordaro said. Stallcup’s photographs will be examined by other marine animal experts for confirmation, he said.

BRIANNA BAILEY may be reached at (714) 966-4625 or at brianna.bailey@latimes.com.