People are prohibited from harming sea lions under the Marine Mammal Protection Act. Ronen Tivony/NurPhoto/Shutterstock The Marine Mammal Protection Act enforces stringent rules on human interaction with California’s sea lions and seals. Under the act, anything from killing to feeding the animals is strictly prohibited. While some breeds of sea lions are endangered, the California Sea Lion is not. Still, the species was historically hunted for practically every part of its body, down to its whiskers that were used to build tools, according to the Alaska Department of Fish and Game. As cute as pinnipeds appear, they’ve grown more aggressive over the years as tourists encroach on their habitats. In August, a 9-year-old girl was bitten by a sea lion at a surf camp after her class wandered a little too far into its territory. The sea lion punctured her leg and dragged her underwater before her surf instructor corralled all of the kids back to shore. And in April, a colony of typically docile sea lions off the California coast suddenly turned “demonic” after being infected by mind-warping toxic algae. The group attacked multiple surfers, even charging at veteran surfers who had frequented the waters for decades. Filed under