This is the adorable moment a sea lion pup climbed onto a surfer 's board off the coast of San Diego in Southern California , before cuddling up to him and riding the waves with him for more than an hour . The small marine creature reportedly approached longtime surfer and father-of-one , Dan Murphy , as he was taking to the water at Cardiff-by-the-Sea , off the shore of San Elijo Campground , on Sunday . It leaped onto the back of Mr Murphy 's board and 'hugged ' him from behind , leading him to think he was being attacked . But when the surfer whirled around , he saw it was only the 'scared-looking ' pup . The sea lion pup jumped onto surfer Dan Murphy 's board while he was in the water off of the San Diego coast . Pup hopped onto the back of Mr Murphy 's board and 'hugged ' him , leading him to think he was being attacked . The sea lion eventually crawled into Mr Murphy 's lap and spend more than an hour riding the waves with him . For the next 20 minutes , the animal apparently held on tightly to Mr Murphy , before crawling into his lap 'like a puppy ' . It then floated on the board and rode the waves with the surfer for a further hour . However , eventually , Mr Murphy , who has a seven-month-old baby son , had to nudge the pup off his board , and encourage it to swim off , because he needed to go home . He told NBC that the farewell was a tearful one , saying : ' I was literally in tears ... I waved to him . ' Speaking of the experience overall , he added : 'He spent well over an hour on my board ... you see those pups around this time of year , [ but ] I ’ ve never seen them interact with people like that . ' While Mr Murphy was frolicking in the ocean with the sea lion pup , his friend , Eileen Quinetela , was snapping photos of the incredible encounter . One picture shows the pup sunbathing on the board . Others depict the animal cuddling up to Mr Murphy , 'hugging ' him from behind , and another surfer riding past sporting an amazed expression . They were met by an array of stunned and envious responses from Mr Murphy 's friends , with one Facebook user writing : 'OMG that 's incredible ! ! A seal is hugging you ! ! ! ' , and another saying : 'That 's awesome . ' Mr Murphy said : 'He spent well over an hour on my board ... you see those pups around this time of year ' Nearly 2,000 seas lions have washed up on shores in California in sick and starving conditions so far this year . The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has sounded the alarm over the surge in famished pups . It comes as California remains in the midst of a sea lion pup crisis , with nearly 2,000 of the animals having washed up on the state 's shores in sick and starving conditions so far this year . Last week , the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration ( NOAA ) sounded the alarm over the surge in famished pups , saying there has been 'an unusually large increase ' in sea lion strandings . In January and February , strandings were 20 times the average rate for the time of year . In a conference call with reporters , an NOAA official said that up to March 15 , more than 1,800 sea lions had been recorded , 750 of which were brought into the group 's facilities , to be fed back up . The pups were also treated for any health problems before being released back into the ocean . Other pups have been cared for - and eventually returned to the wild - by SeaWorld trainers in the region . While Mr Murphy was with the pup , his friend Eileen Quinetela was snapping photos of the unique encounter . Experts believe warming ocean temperatures are partly responsible for the enormous rise in sea lion strandings . Speaking to NBC , Mr Murphy said the pup that jumped on to his board on Sunday morning did not appear malnourished and was comfortable around him , so may have been a rehabilitated sea lion . Experts believe warming sea temperatures are at least , in part , responsible for the enormous rise in sea lion strandings , changing the availability of fish and other organisms on which sea lions prey . Female sea lions , which weigh some 100 kilos ( against some 400 kg for males ) , have to swim further to find food , leading them to become prematurely separated from their pups . The next two months are likely to see an even greater surge in strandings , along the lines of a 2013 Unusual Mortality Event ( UME ) , experts say , before hopefully the numbers will start to fall . Nate Mantua of NOAA said one piece of good news was signs of northerly winds which would help bring colder waters more rich in nutrients , at least in northern California . This could ease the food crisis which is driving the strandings , he said . Mr Murphy said the little sea lion that jumped on to his board on Sunday morning did not appear malnourished .
Sea lion pup jumped onto surfer Dan Murphy 's board off California coast . Then 'hugged ' him from behind , before crawling into his lap 'like a puppy ' For next hour , pair floated on board and rode waves at Cardiff-by-the-Sea . Finally , Mr Murphy had to nudge pup away because he was going home . ' I was literally in tears ... I waved to him , ' said Mr Murphy , a father-of-one . Comes as rising numbers of famished pups wash up on San Diego shore . Mr Murphy believes his new friend may have been treated and released .