Boaters caught in the middle of sea lion-hunting killer whale pod

April 13 (UPI) -- Some Canadian boaters got stuck in the middle of a struggle for survival between a sea lion and a pod of hungry killer whales.

A boater near Bowyer Island in Howe Sound, British Columbia, captured video Tuesday when he spotted a whale-watching boat nearby and approached for a closer look, only to find his vessel quickly surrounded by killer whales.

"It wasn't quite clear what was going on, but then suddenly a sea lion clung onto the boat next to us and the killer whales were in the midst of all the boats!" the man wrote.

The man said he and the other boater were concerned their propellers could injure the orcas, so they stayed put for a time while the killer whales repeatedly bumped their vessels.

"The guide from the whale-watching boat suggested that the other boat, which the sea lion was hanging onto, to move closer to Bowyer Island so that the sea lion could get safely to shore. The other boat followed the guide's advice and slowly motored to shore. The sea lion was safe in the end, though clearly a little injured," the filmer wrote.