By Jorge Casuso

May 2, 2025 -- Over the past two months, dolphins, sea lions and a variety of sea birds have been washing up on Santa Monica's shore injured or dead.

The culprit: toxic algae blooms likely fed by nutrient-rich runoff from the devastating wildfires that swept through Pacific Palisades in January, according to marine experts.

In the last reported count for the seven days from April 13 to April 19, Santa Monica Animal Control officers picked up 6 dead sea lions, 4 dolphins, 6 pelicans, 2 loons and a gull.

The numbers and severity of the finds have been increasing, according to Police Department updates posted on SMPD's "The Blue Notebook" weekly blog.

Less than a month earlier, in the seven days between March 23 and March 29, three sick sea lions, a sick pelican an injured mallard duck were picked up by animal rescue teams called by Animal Control officers.

According to the blog post, "There continues to be a high number of marine mammal strandings and an increase of deceased marine mammals and birds on the beach."

That first mention of dead and stranded animals would be repeated in subsequent posts on The Blue Notebook that provided detailed accounts of some of the significant incidents.

On April 7, Animal Control officers responding to a call reporting an injured sea lion in the 1550 block of the beach found the adult animal at the waterline.

"The sea lion was acting lethargic, confused, and displayed signs of being in distress," the blog reported. "A large crowd of spectators started to gather."

Animal Control Officers determined that the sea lion needed to be "pulled and transported" to the Marine Mammal Rescue (MMR) in San Pedro for medical treatment."

After notifying the center, which provided an ETA of one and a half hours, Animal Control officers "stood by and monitored the sea lion and provided crowd control" until rescuers arrived.

According to articles posted on MMR's website, the center had been in crisis mode for more than two weeks rescuing sea lions and dolphins washing up along the coast from Long Beach up to Malibu.

On the day the sea lion was rescued in Santa Monica, CBS News reported that at the MMR Center in San Pedro "there are so many animals being treated that the nonprofit has had to build enclosures in the parking lot."

CEO John Warner attributed part of the problem to the animals feeding on fish that had consumed algae containing domoic acid, a toxin commonly referred to as red tide.

"It's a neurological toxin," Warner said. "It affects their brains. They're having seizures. They're completely disoriented."

During the week of April 19, most of the sea lions and dolphins washing up on Santa Monica Beach were either dead or dying.

Of those stranded alive, two injured dolphins were transported to the MMR Center, while a third succumbed to its injuries.

The four dead dolphins were taken by Animal Control officers to Dockweiler’s State Beach, where O.R.R.A. (Ocean Animal Response and Research Alliance) personnel conducted "a necropsy and research study on their cause of death."