{"id":17422,"date":"2026-10-26T16:45:11","date_gmt":"2026-10-26T16:45:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/temoanaexpeditions.com\/buceo-con-lobos-marinos-en-baja-california-sur\/"},"modified":"2026-10-26T16:52:07","modified_gmt":"2026-10-26T16:52:07","slug":"scuba-diving-with-sea-lions-in-baja-california-sur","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/temoanaexpeditions.com\/en\/scuba-diving-with-sea-lions-in-baja-california-sur\/","title":{"rendered":"Scuba diving with sea lions in Baja California Sur"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Before you see anything, you hear them. As the panga approaches the rocks, the colony has already noticed your arrival: barking from every direction, dark bodies slipping into the water, and the occasional juvenile leaping in before you’ve even finished adjusting your regulator. The sea lions of Baja California Sur<\/a> don’t wait for you to find them. They find you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you’d rather experience it from the surface, our guide to snorkeling with sea lions<\/strong><\/a> covers the basics. Here, we’ll focus on what matters when you dive with a tank: how they behave, how to move among them, why the colony’s seasonal calendar matters, and where else you might encounter them in the region.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Scuba diving is a different kind of encounter<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Young sea lions have one particular obsession: bubbles.<\/strong> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

To them, a diver breathing underwater is a source of entertainment. That’s why you’ll see them dive in as soon as the boat approaches, then circle around your regulator as though it were a toy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

With scuba gear, you’re in their playground for the entire dive, and at depths of 5\u201315 meters, the encounter lasts longer. Even so, it’s not what most visitors do. A CIBNOR study on the carrying capacity of Los Islotes recorded around 3,900 scuba divers between March 2014 and February 2015, compared with more than 15,000 snorkelers. The figures are a few years old, but they give a good sense of the proportions: for every scuba diver, almost four people stayed at the surface.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Sea<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Who’s who in the colony<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The California sea lion (Zalophus californianus<\/em>) is the only pinniped species living in the Gulf of California, which has 13 breeding colonies.<\/strong> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Los Islotes, north of Esp\u00edritu Santo Island<\/a>, is the southernmost of them all, and CONANP estimates its population at around 550 individuals. The species is listed as subject to special protection under Mexican regulations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Not every sea lion in the colony behaves the same way, and it’s worth learning to tell them apart from the very first minute:<\/p>\n\n\n\n