Another rare 'sea monster' lands in California: a 15-foot saber-toothed whale
By Michael Martinez, CNN
updated 10:44 PM EDT, Thu October 17, 2013
Los Angeles (CNN) -- Oh, Jules Verne or Peter Benchley, where are you, great writers of deep-sea monsters?
For the second time this week, Southern California has seen a rare sea beast washed ashore, far from home waters.
This time, it's a saber-toothed whale, better known to live in deep Alaskan waters than in the warm surf of tourist-choked Venice Beach in Los Angeles where it stranded Wednesday.
In an extraordinary way even for scientists, the carcass of the nearly 15-foot and 2,000-pound whale was intact -- except for a couple of fresh bite marks from sharks. The whale, a female, apparently was barely alive when it came ashore -- a highly unusual sight because beached whales are often badly decomposed or badly eaten by marine life, a local biologist said.
...
Just three days earlier, another rarely observed species -- a sea-serpent-like animal called an oarfish -- was discovered dead at Catalina Island off the Los Angeles coast.
Oarfish hide in the deep ocean. The one found in the island's Toyon Bay was so big -- 18 feet long -- that it required 15 people to hold it chest-high in a trophy photo taken by the Catalina Island Marine Institute...
By Michael Martinez, CNN
updated 10:44 PM EDT, Thu October 17, 2013
Los Angeles (CNN) -- Oh, Jules Verne or Peter Benchley, where are you, great writers of deep-sea monsters?
For the second time this week, Southern California has seen a rare sea beast washed ashore, far from home waters.
This time, it's a saber-toothed whale, better known to live in deep Alaskan waters than in the warm surf of tourist-choked Venice Beach in Los Angeles where it stranded Wednesday.
In an extraordinary way even for scientists, the carcass of the nearly 15-foot and 2,000-pound whale was intact -- except for a couple of fresh bite marks from sharks. The whale, a female, apparently was barely alive when it came ashore -- a highly unusual sight because beached whales are often badly decomposed or badly eaten by marine life, a local biologist said.
...
Just three days earlier, another rarely observed species -- a sea-serpent-like animal called an oarfish -- was discovered dead at Catalina Island off the Los Angeles coast.
Oarfish hide in the deep ocean. The one found in the island's Toyon Bay was so big -- 18 feet long -- that it required 15 people to hold it chest-high in a trophy photo taken by the Catalina Island Marine Institute...
http://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/pr/pdfs/per...issued2013.pdf
UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
NATIONAL MARINE FISHERIES SERVICE
Silver Spring, MD 20810
JUN 28, 2013
Incidental Harassment Authorization
The Office of Naval Research (2000 Navy Pentagon, Washington, DC 20350-2000), is hereby authorized under section 101 (a)(5)(D) of the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA; 16 U.S.C. 1371(a)(5)(D)) to harass marine mammals incidental to the Office of Naval Research (ONR)
Acoustic Technology Experiments (ATE) in the western North Pacific Ocean, contingent upon the following conditions:
1. This Authorization is valid from July 1, 2013, through June 30,2014.
This Authorization is valid only for ONR' s activities associated with the ATE occurring in the western North Pacific Ocean.
3. Species Impacted and Level of Takes
(a). The incidental taking of marine mammals, by Level B harassment only, is limited to the following species:
(i). Blue whale- 1
(ii). Bryde's whale (Balaenoptera edeni) 2
(iii). Minke whale (Balaenoptera aculorostrala)- 8
(iv). Fin whale- 2
(v). Gray whale- 1
(vi). Humpback whale- 2
(vii). North Pacific right whale (Euba/aenajaponica)- 1
(viii). Sei whale- 2
(ix). Baird's beaked whale- l
(x). Blainville's beaked whale (Afesoplodon densirostris)- 1
(xi). Bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops truncatus)- 24
(xii). Cuvier's beaked whale (Ziphius cavirostris)- 3
@ Printed on Recycled Paper
(xiii). Dall's porpoise 54
(xiv). Dwarf sperm whale 5
(xv). False killer whale (Pseudorca crassidens)- 8
(xvi). Fraser's dolphin (Lagenodelphis hosei)- 6
(xvii). Gingko-toothed beaked whale (Mesoplodon ginkgodens)- 1
(xviii). Hubb's beaked whale 1
(xix). Killer whale ( Orcinus orca)- 1
(xx). Kogia spp. - 3
(xxi). Longman's beaked whale- 1
(xxii). Melon-headed whale (Peponocephala electra)- 16
(xxiii). Mesoplodon spp. 1
(xxiv). Pacific white-sided dolphin (Lagenorhynchus obliquidens)- 8
(xxv). Pantropical spotted dolphin (Stenalla attenuata)- 36
(xxvi). Pygmy killer whale (Feresa attenuata) 5
(xxvii). Pygmy sperm whale 2
(xxviii). Risso's dolphin (Grampus griseus) 12
(xxix). Rough-toothed dolphin (Steno bredcmensis)- 6
(xxx). Short-beaked common dolphin- 87
(xxxi ). Short-finned pilot whale ( Globicephala macrorhynchus)- 19
(xxxii). Spenn whale (Physeter macrocephalus)- 2
(xxxiii). Spinner dolphin (Stene/la longirostris) 3
(xxxiv). Stejneger's beaked whale- 1
(xxxv). Striped dolphin (Stene/la coeruleoalba) 24
(xxxvi). Hawaiian monk seal- 1
...
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
NATIONAL MARINE FISHERIES SERVICE
Silver Spring, MD 20810
JUN 28, 2013
Incidental Harassment Authorization
The Office of Naval Research (2000 Navy Pentagon, Washington, DC 20350-2000), is hereby authorized under section 101 (a)(5)(D) of the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA; 16 U.S.C. 1371(a)(5)(D)) to harass marine mammals incidental to the Office of Naval Research (ONR)
Acoustic Technology Experiments (ATE) in the western North Pacific Ocean, contingent upon the following conditions:
1. This Authorization is valid from July 1, 2013, through June 30,2014.
This Authorization is valid only for ONR' s activities associated with the ATE occurring in the western North Pacific Ocean.
3. Species Impacted and Level of Takes
(a). The incidental taking of marine mammals, by Level B harassment only, is limited to the following species:
(i). Blue whale- 1
(ii). Bryde's whale (Balaenoptera edeni) 2
(iii). Minke whale (Balaenoptera aculorostrala)- 8
(iv). Fin whale- 2
(v). Gray whale- 1
(vi). Humpback whale- 2
(vii). North Pacific right whale (Euba/aenajaponica)- 1
(viii). Sei whale- 2
(ix). Baird's beaked whale- l
(x). Blainville's beaked whale (Afesoplodon densirostris)- 1
(xi). Bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops truncatus)- 24
(xii). Cuvier's beaked whale (Ziphius cavirostris)- 3
@ Printed on Recycled Paper
(xiii). Dall's porpoise 54
(xiv). Dwarf sperm whale 5
(xv). False killer whale (Pseudorca crassidens)- 8
(xvi). Fraser's dolphin (Lagenodelphis hosei)- 6
(xvii). Gingko-toothed beaked whale (Mesoplodon ginkgodens)- 1
(xviii). Hubb's beaked whale 1
(xix). Killer whale ( Orcinus orca)- 1
(xx). Kogia spp. - 3
(xxi). Longman's beaked whale- 1
(xxii). Melon-headed whale (Peponocephala electra)- 16
(xxiii). Mesoplodon spp. 1
(xxiv). Pacific white-sided dolphin (Lagenorhynchus obliquidens)- 8
(xxv). Pantropical spotted dolphin (Stenalla attenuata)- 36
(xxvi). Pygmy killer whale (Feresa attenuata) 5
(xxvii). Pygmy sperm whale 2
(xxviii). Risso's dolphin (Grampus griseus) 12
(xxix). Rough-toothed dolphin (Steno bredcmensis)- 6
(xxx). Short-beaked common dolphin- 87
(xxxi ). Short-finned pilot whale ( Globicephala macrorhynchus)- 19
(xxxii). Spenn whale (Physeter macrocephalus)- 2
(xxxiii). Spinner dolphin (Stene/la longirostris) 3
(xxxiv). Stejneger's beaked whale- 1
(xxxv). Striped dolphin (Stene/la coeruleoalba) 24
(xxxvi). Hawaiian monk seal- 1
...
http://www.agriculturedefensecoaliti...testing-ranges
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