SAN DIEGO—A federal appeals court issued an emergency order Monday allowing the city of San Diego to replace a rope barrier at a beach in La Jolla to protect nursing harbor seals.

The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said the barrier can stay up until the breeding season ends in May while it considers whether it should stay permanently.

The picturesque cove has lately been a battleground between animal rights activists and residents who argue the rope barrier violates a 1931 deed requiring the city to preserve the beach for human use as a children's pool.

Two state court judges and two state appellate courts have ruled that the rope illegally interferes with the public's access to the beach, known as the Children's Pool. San Diego has been under court order to evict the seals and dredge the sand to make it safe for children.

The San Diego-based Animal Protection and Rescue League has challenged those rulings in federal court. The group argues the rules of the state trust governing the cove are trumped by the federal Marine Mammal Protection Act.

Click here to read the complete story in the San Jose Mercury News.