The sea lions closest to the inflatable dancers jumped away, while others nearby stubbornly stayed put. (KPTV News)

If you ever find yourself in the town of Astoria, Oregon, you may see quite a few of the "wacky inflatable flailing arm" blow-up dancers, but they're not there to sell you anything– they're there to scare the sea lions.

Sea lions, while undoubtably cute, flock to Astoria in such large numbers that it actually hurts the local economy. According to the Port of Astoria's recent press release about the animals, sea lions interfere with the fishing industry by crowding the docks and eating the fish. All in all, about 2,000 of the animals show up each year.

The Port of Astoria began using the inflatable air dancers on Thursday as a way to spook the sea lions away from the overcrowded docks. On the inaugural day of this whimsical experiment, it seems to have worked – to an extent. Sea lions that were right next to the dancers jumped right off the dock, but others nearby stayed right where they were.

(MORE: Starving Sea Lion Seats Herself at California Restaurant)

It's not the first creative solution the town has employed to try to keep the sea lions at bay. As KGW TV reports, the Port has used electrified mats, beach balls and even a giant fake orca. But time and time again, the sea lions prove just how smart they truly are.

"The thing about the sea lions is, they're very intelligent animals," Robert Evert, a Port official, told KGW TV, "and so if they realize these are not a threat or harm to them, it's possible they'll get back on the docks."

Taking that possibility into account, the port does have a back-up plan.

"Our suspicion is that this is just temporary," Jim Knight, executive director of the Port, told the Daily Astorian. He said another, long-term solution is to install rails along the docks to keep the sea lions from climbing up onto them.

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