David "Bugzy" Frank
David "Bugzy" Frank, 63, a member of the Chinook Tribe and a fisherman and former logger of mixed Chinook and Quinault descent, is determined to save the area's fish populations by chasing away sea lions. He estimates, for example, that about 30 of the aggressive predators are currently ensconced in an area beyond the Raymond Bridge.
Frank, who proposes to scare sea lions back to the ocean using modified sturgeon nets that he likens to floating spider webs, is currently looking for public donations to finance the repair of his boat and pay for fuel costs in order that he can undertake the endeavor, which he says will be about a month-long process.
"The sea lion rolls out. It literally chases them back to the sea," Frank said of the effectiveness of his sea lion nets. "It takes a whole month to do it because you can only use that net when the tides going out. If you do it when the tides coming in, then the sea lions will be able to get through it."
Sea lions are too large to become entangled in his nets, according to Frank, instead bouncing off them in frustration.
Sea lion populations pose a threat to salmon and steelhead on the Columbia River in particular, but Frank says current proposed federal legislation on sea lion removal from select locations doesn't go far enough.
Showing off a formidable looking sea lion skull recovered from a beach, Frank said the proliferation of sea lions is a potential threat to public safety as well as fish, citing the case of a girl who was dragged into the water by a sea lion in May of this year in British Columbia.
"They have bigger teeth than a bear. People don't know that," Frank stated. "People don't know that they're just a bear in the water."
"Officials, all they tell me is they're protected. The publics got to be aware of what's going on," said Frank. "The laws are they're protected, but there's so many of them. They don't belong in rivers. They're supposed to be in the ocean. That's why they're called sea lions."
A colorful character and ready storyteller, Frank's pickup truck and boat both feature anti-sea lion insignia. He's recently lost a considerable amount of weight, he said, after once tipping the scales at 300 pounds, the result of taking cookies and pies from tribal elders in exchange for donating portions of his crab catch. A harbor seal plush toy adorns the bed of his pickup - "good seals," Frank calls them.
And Frank undoubtedly knows a thing or two about the area's aquatic fauna. A then 13-year-old Frank is pictured swimming in Bay Center in the June 22, 1967, edition of the South Bend Journal with a seal pup named Salty that Frank and his dog Pepper adopted and nursed back to health before releasing.
First instructed in the art of chasing off sea lions by his father at age eleven, Frank said he's uniquely positioned to deal with the problem of unwanted sea lions and that his nets are safer and more effective than shooting the animals, which he said is the only other effective means of control.
"I'm trying to tell the public. If I don't do it, who's going to solve the problem," said Frank. "Who's going to do it next time? When I'm gone, no one's going to know how to make these nets."
"When they come in, they stay, and they bring their friends back," said Frank of his sea lion nemeses.
Frank indicated he needs about $2,000 for the repair of his 22-foot boat, as well as another $2,000 or so for gas and incidentals for his and a second back-up boat. He indicated he will soon have t-shirts available for sale in order to help raise funds for the endeavor.
"I'm 63 and the only thing I'm good for now is chasing sea lions. But I don't mind that because that's my job. That's my life story is taking care of the rivers," Frank concluded.
Those looking to contribute can contact Frank at 360-942-2574 or his boat repairer, South Bend Boat Shop, at 360-875-5712 (phone) or 360-875-6965 (fax).