Viral sea lion Chonkers inspires stuffed animal at San Francisco pier

Chonkers, the 2,000-pound Steller sea lion that turned PIER 39’s K-Dock into a Bay Area spectacle, now has a stuffed-animal twin. The Marine Mammal Center began taking pre-orders for a Chonkers plushie at $24.95, folding the animal’s viral fame into fundraising for the center’s work protecting Steller sea lions and other marine mammals.

The real Chonkers first hauled out on PIER 39’s docks on March 13, 2026, then kept coming back, drawing crowds to Fisherman’s Wharf and a steady stream of posts, photos and television coverage. PIER 39 responded by building a dedicated Meet Chonkers page, complete with guidance on how to identify him and warnings that smaller California sea lions can be mistaken for the larger visitor. The pier says the best chance to see him is before 10 a.m., though he sometimes returns in the afternoon.

The attention has turned a single wild animal into a tourist draw, but the story also exposes the tension between harmless fandom and the risks of treating wildlife like a mascot. PIER 39 and marine-mammal experts have repeatedly stressed that California sea lions are protected by the Marine Mammal Protection Act and should not be fed, handled or harassed because they can bite if provoked. The viral framing can be playful, but the animal is still a wild marine mammal moving through a crowded urban waterfront.

Chonkers’ presence also reflects the ecology of San Francisco Bay, not just the power of social media. PIER 39 says the Bay may be holding his attention because it is anchovy season and food is plentiful. The Marine Mammal Center says Steller sea lions normally live in colder North Pacific waters, but they can pass through the Bay when prey is abundant. The plushie, presented as a way for fans who cannot visit the pier to get their own version of the animal, turns that natural behavior into a consumer product.

PIER 39’s sea lion colony has been part of the waterfront story since shortly after the Loma Prieta earthquake in October 1989, when California sea lions began hauling out on K-Dock and experts from The Marine Mammal Center recommended they stay. The colony grew to more than 300 within months and reached an all-time record of more than 2,100 in May and June 2024. Chonkers has now joined that history, not as part of a conservation plan, but as a viral figure whose fame is being packaged, sold and translated into a souvenir.