Esplanade Surf School instructor Tim Blackwood was running a class yesterday afternoon when a sea lion took a liking to one of the surfboards on the shore and joined their class.
"He came in so we said ‘all right, everyone out of the way’.
"Everyone moved, sweet as, then he jumped on the board.
"Everyone started taking photos and looking down at the beach.
"So we left them there and let them do their own thing."
The male was eventually joined by a young female.
The male was "showing off to her", Mr Blackwood said.
The sea lions were basking in the sun on the board and playing around for about two hours, by which time the surf school was finished for the day and the tide was coming in.
Mr Blackwood said as cute as the pair were, they did need their $300 board back before it was swept out to sea.
"We just removed the board from under them and there were no dramas, the sea lions weren’t fussed at all.
Out of all the classes he had run at St Clair Beach, he had never had a sea lion gatecrash a lesson.
"We’ve never had a sea lion hop on one of our surfboards."
Dunedin Wildlife Hospital manager Jordana Whyte said while she could not quite see the tag identifying the male, the smaller female was a 2-year-old named Astro, who had a "real affinity for surfing".
"[She] was last spotted joining ... a kids surf comp on November 10 — no word on how she placed in the competition.
"Astro is the great-great-great grand pup of Mum, the sea lion immortalised in the Esplanade statue."
Sea lion silly season is just around the corner — another rogue sea lion was spotted playing on Taieri Mouth Rd.
Motorists were being warned to watch out for sea lions coming up to shore and to keep the recommended 10m away when sharing a space.
