The San Diego Zoo's Girls In Science visited Wegeforth Bowl this past week and met with a couple of very handsome California sea lions named Jake and Nelson. (Oh yeah, and trainers Carlee Westbrook and Sherri Taul, too!)

Our introduction to the afternoon was a Wegeforth Bowl Sea Lion Show, where the girls could watch the trainers putting different types of animals through their paces. They noticed how closely each animal focused on its trainer and how, after performing a behavior, each animal was given a treat. The trainers explained to us later that they reward the behaviors they want, and ignore the behaviors they do not want"”this is called " positive reinforcement." This approach encourages positive and rewarding relationships between the trainers and the animals that they work with, and builds trust.

After the show, the trainers brought out Jake and walked him through a training session. We watched as they worked on a new behavior"”foot tapping"”using a target so Jake would know where to direct his efforts. Each time he lifted his flipper toward the target, he was rewarded with a handful of fish. It was a great opportunity for the girls to see how each behavior is broken down into small steps to make it easier for the animals to learn.

When Jake finished, Nelson joined us. Nelson is a calm, older fellow, and is a great one for posing. The girls each got a chance to pose for a picture with him, but not until it was explained to them that they must follow directions. Nelson knew and trusted his trainers, but we were unknowns"”if we did something he wasn't expecting, it would scare him, and we didn't want to do that. The girls did fabulously, and each came away with a picture of themselves, a sea lion magnet, and"”most importantly!"”a hand wipe!!

The trainers told us they wanted our visit to be the best of the semester. I think the girls would agree that getting smooched by a sea lion was definitely a highlight!

Cindy Spiva-Evans is an educator at the San Diego Zoo.

Girls In Science is a program for Roosevelt Middle School girls which creates science-based experiences with professional women at the San Diego Zoo. The program is funded through the generosity of the Wells Fargo Foundation.

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