Looking for clues

Imagine that you’re a researcher who has to collect information on the size and weight of Steller sea lions in the wild. You’d have to find an island with sea lions, sneak up on them so they don’t run away or chase you down, shoot them with a tranquilizer dart and hope that you didn’t make them angry, and then haul the unconscious, car-sized animals onto a scale to record their weight. You'd probably want an easier way to get that information.

It's so much easier to weigh a sea lion by simply pointing to a scale and telling it to hop on. That’s exactly what the trainers at the Vancouver Aquarium do. Having Stellers at the Aquarium allows researchers to collect valuable information that they can’t get from sea lions in the wild.

The people who make it happen
The North Pacific Universities Marine Mammal Research Consortium is an international group of universities dedicated to helping the sea lions. Led by Dr. Andrew Trites, scientists from the University of British Columbia have a special opportunity: they get to work closely with the Aquarium’s sea lion trainers to do studies that would be impossible to carry out in the wild. This relationship between scientists and animal trainers to get insight into the disappearance of Steller sea lions is a unique part of the research program. Check out the Consortium's website for the latest research updates.

Go behind the scenes at the Vancouver Aquarium with Marine Mammal Trainer Gwyneth Shephard.

Video screenshot of marine mammal trainer Gwyneth Shephard. Click to watch the video interview