A female elephant seal and pup relax on a beach just south of the Piedras Blancas Light Station along Highway 1 in 2007. Three seals were shot and killed over the weekend at the North Coast rookery.
Of all the senseless acts of cruelty that have occurred in San Luis Obispo County in recentmemory— and unfortunately, our community is no more immune from such incidents than any other area —the shooting of three elephant seals is one of the hardest to fathom.
What possible motive could have led someone to deliberately fire bullets into the heads of these amazing animals as they lay, vulnerable, on the beach?
Was it anger? Or some sick way of showing off?
Was this carefully planned? Or some horrible, spur-of-the-moment idiocy?
And could there possibly be a connection to the shooting of six sea lions in Oregon?
Speculating, of course, won’t solve this crime. For that, investigators are asking for help from the public.
We join them in urging anyone with information to come forward.
If you spotted something suspicious near the scene of the shooting, which occurred between Friday night and Saturday morning about 12 miles north of Cambria along Highway 1, let authorities know.
Or certainly, if you have personal knowledge of who may have committed this brutal act, please call one of the tip lines.
This can’t be written off as a prank. It was a senseless slaughter, and we must send a strong message that we won’t stand for such behavior.
That means doing everything in our power to catch the responsible parties, and when we do, seeking the strongest punishment possible.
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