B.C. is home to many miraculous feats of nature and wildlife. The diversity of its creatures is matched only by the vast ruggedness of its landscapes. So much so that some animals slip inconspicuously out of public awareness. One such creature is the sea wolf.
Yes a sea wolf, unlike a sea lion, is very similar to its other wolf cousins, apart from it has evolved traits suited to its coastal lifestyle. They can swim up to 13 kilometres, have a symbiotic relationship with ravens which helps them hunt, and has a diet made up nearly entirely of fish.
“I thought to myself, ‘Oh shit, they think I’m a seal.’ It was a bit of a Darwin moment. Thankfully, they just chewed on my snorkel a bit, figured out that I wasn’t a seal and then went back to their herring eggs.” – Ian McAllister has a close experience with seawolves, who live a unique life on B.C’s coasts, but are being culled by the provincial government because they are considered vermin #conservation
However, despite their uniqueness, the provincial government still regards them as “vermin.” In 2015, the province launched a major culling of all wolves, shooting them from helicopters in order to help boost the caribou population.
Ian McAllister (@iantmcallister), the executive director of Pacific Wild, a conservation group based in B.C., is striving to have sea wolves recognized as their own case of protected species, and have them excluded from the cull and other killings.
“Arguably the most important predator on the coast can be killed outright. Killing wolves requires no special license or permits. They can even be hunted in protected provincial park areas.” – Ian McAllister
Read more about the sea wolf and how this incredible species faces extinction at the hands of ignorant human hunters in Canadian Wildlife magazine, May + June 2016 edition.
Also for more photographs, be sure to check out @iantmcallister on Instagram.