'Chonkers,' the massive sea lion, is drawing crowds at San Francisco pier - BERITAJA

A peculiarly monolithic oversea lion has Bay Area visitors and residents flocking to Pier 39 successful San Francisco to spot the mammal affectionately named “Chonkers.”

“Chonkers” is simply a Steller oversea lion, which is simply a heftier assortment of the species, compared to his California oversea lion counterparts.

The animal first showed up astatine Pier 39 about a period agone and has attracted liking connected online forums specified arsenic Reddit, pinch users posting photos and videos of the oversea lion sunning and scratching his belly pinch his flippers.

“Chonkers” is about 2,000 pounds and is overmuch larger than California oversea lions, which don’t usually transcend much than 850 pounds and 7 feet successful length, according to the San Francisco Chronicle.

Male Steller oversea lions measurement up to 2,500 pounds and scope 11 feet successful magnitude pinch a lifespan of 20 to 30 years, according to the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. According to the Marine Mammal Center, female stellar oversea lions could turn to 9 feet successful magnitude and 1,000 pounds.

“Chonkers the stellar oversea lion is backmost astatine Pier 39 today!” 1 Reddit personification posted successful the subreddit r/SanFrancisco about a period ago. “...lounging astatine the back. travel and get a glimpse of him earlier he swims away.”

“He’d person 20 Twitter accounts successful amended times,” different Reddit personification commented successful consequence to the post.

Thousands of oversea lions stitchery astatine the pier depending connected the clip of year, KRON4 reported. Sea lions for illustration to flock location because location is plentifulness of nutrient and it’s protected from predators, harbor officials told the outlet.

Adult antheral stellar oversea lions don’t person a visible sagittal crest (the bump connected the apical of their heads) that is observed successful big antheral California oversea lions, according to the Marine Mammal Center.

Steller oversea lions unrecorded successful coastal waters successful the bluish Pacific, and about Japan and Central California, according to the center. Breeding occurs successful regions spanning from Año Nuevo Island successful Central California to the Kuril Islands northbound of Japan, pinch the top attraction of breeding grounds successful the Gulf of Alaska and Aleutian Islands.

Steller oversea lions could beryllium separated into Western and Eastern populations and are differentiated based connected beingness and familial differences.

Stellar oversea lion pups are calved from mid-May to mid-July and usually measurement 35 to 50 pounds, according to the center. The mothers enactment pinch their pups for up to 2 weeks earlier hunting astatine sea.

Mating occurs about 2 weeks aft the pups are born. Males don’t eat during mating play but erstwhile they do, they provender connected fish, invertebrates and different pinnipeds. Killer whales and whale sharks are their known predators.