Pier 39 sea lions

Since 1990, groups of California sea lions have regularly hauled out on the docks at Pier 39, becoming a long-running local attraction documented by visitors and media. Photographs and short videos of the barking sea lions are widely shared online and have been used in numerous animal- and city-themed memes. The presence of the sea lions at Pier 39 is a documented ecological and tourist phenomenon managed by the Pier 39 business community.