Marine mammal the attempt at such") of any marine mammal without a permit issued by the Secretary. Authority to manage the MMPA was divided between the Secretary of the Interior through the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), and the Secretary of Commerce, which is delegated to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). The Marine Mammal Commission (MMC) was established to review existing policies and make recommendations to the Service and NOAA to better implement the MMPA. The Service is responsible for ensuring the protection of sea otters and marine otters, walruses, polar bears, the three species of manatees, and dugongs;
The Marine Mammal Center Researchers at the Marine Mammal Center have discovered that domoic acid (DA) is the causative agent responsible for illness in a great many California sea lions. DA is naturally produced by the diatom "Pseudo-nitzschia". DA passes up the food chain as the diatoms are consumed by zooplankton. These zooplankton are then consumed by fish where the toxin accumulates. Fish are unharmed by it. California sea lions are disproportionate affected because they feed closer to shore, where more of these diatoms are present. When consumed by (marine) mammals, it activates neural pathways in the brain, specifically, the hippocampus. This neural activation