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A screengrab from the video. Photo: Dunedin NZ screenshot
An advocacy group says an official Dunedin marketing video showing a sea lion being "actively disturbed" by a beach rugby game should be taken down.
The video, part of Enterprise Dunedin's new marketing campaign, has been roundly criticised online since being posted to the Dunedin NZ Facebook page yesterday.
New Zealand Sea Lion Trust trustee Chloe Barker said the video needed to be taken down ''as soon as possible''.
It was disappointing to see a council organisation publishing material showing a sea lion being disturbed, she said.
''We work really, really hard to try and educate the public about how to interact with Dunedin's wildlife.
''It just kind of feels like it undoes a little bit of the good work and the efforts that not only the trust but the whole community has been behind.''
A scene from the video shows the sea lion reacting as people come closer. Photo: Dunedin NZ screenshot
The video, which was part of a campaign designed to attract Australia tourists to Dunedin, could give people the wrong idea of how to interact with wildlife.
''When you have people coming from outside of Dunedin or outside of New Zealand, then it's particularly important that what we're portraying is a sustainable way of interacting with our wildlife,'' Barker said.
''We completely understand how exciting it is to see a sea lion, because no matter how many times you see a sea lion, you still get excited by it.
''But we'd really like to see a promotion that helps to leave them in peace.
''You can see that the sea lion actually reacts and has been disturbed during that whole filming process.''
She was pleased the public had recognised issues with the ad and hoped it would ''disappear off the internet''.
''We'd like to see the ad taken down as soon as possible, the worst thing that can happen is it getting shared.''
The video shows a sea lion rising and moving towards the players, who run away as the marine mammal approaches.
The sea lion trust said it had not been engaged with during the making of the video, as was common during previous shoots.
Dunedin City Council has been approached for comment.
Dunedin city councillor Steve Walker raised concerns about the campaign earlier this month, pointing out that the touch rugby players appeared to be too close to the sea lion.
Commenters on the Dunedin NZ Facebook page described the video as "appalling messaging" which encouraged beachgoers to play around sea lions.
This story was first published by the Otago Daily Times.
