2 rare deep water species beach in southern California during past week

[Emily]

http://www.cnn.com/2013/10/17/us/saber-toothed-whale-california/

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...

With all the current Naval training going on, (http://www.flutrackers.com/forum/showthread.php?t=212418), perhaps these animals are collateral damages.

http://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/pr/pdfs/permits/onr_ate_iha_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
...

(The Stejneger's beaked whale is another name for the saber-toothed whale.)

http://www.agriculturedefensecoalition.org/content/us-navy-pacific-warfare-testing-ranges :tiphat:

 

[Emily]

Re: 2 rare deep water species beach in southern California during past week

http://www.utsandiego.com/news/2013/oct/18/oar-fish-oceanside-offbeat/

Oarfish washes up in Oceanside
By Susan Shroder6:26 p.m.Oct. 18, 2013Updated10:43 p.m.
OCEANSIDE ? For the second time in a week, a rare serpent-like oarfish has surfaced in Southern California, this one on Friday at Oceanside Harbor.
...
A NOAA representative responded to retrieve the fish, which she measured at 13 1/2 feet long. The carcass was cut into sections and removed in coolers for later study...

 

[Emily]

Re: 2 rare deep water species beach in southern California during past week

http://www.ctvnews.ca/sci-tech/huge-sea-serpent-oarfish-was-female-carrying-hundreds-of-thousands-of-eggs-1.1507591

Huge 'sea serpent' oarfish was female, carrying hundreds of thousands of eggs
Alicia Chang, The Associated Press
Published Tuesday, October 22, 2013 8:17AM EDT
Last Updated Tuesday, October 22, 2013 9:44PM EDT
...
How did the two oarfish die?

While necropsies -- the animal version of an autopsy -- were done on the oarfish, the cause of death remains unknown. Scientists said the deaths may forever remain a mystery. The smaller oarfish appeared to be in good health before it died and there were no signs of shark bites...

Read more: http://www.ctvnews.ca/sci-tech/huge...-of-thousands-of-eggs-1.1507591#ixzz2iZcBpR9c

http://www.latimes.com/local/la-me-1022-oarfish-20131022,0,995333.story#axzz2iZcgvTvZ

By Samantha Schaefer
October 21, 2013, 10:19 p.m.
Deaths of two giant oarfish may be linked, scientists say
One expert says the most likely cause was a current that carried the oarfish from still waters into a near-shore, more turbulent area, which they aren't adapted to surviving in.
...
As photos of the huge fish have made there way across the Internet, many theories have been offered as to why they died.

One claim working its way around websites and blogs is that oarfish dying is a sign of an upcoming earthquake.

Experts, however, stressed that they have not pinpointed a cause of death.
"With a rare event like this, it is a bit troubling, but it's a total mystery," Vetter said.

Instead of allowing a panic over earthquake precursors to foment, let's find out if Level B harassment of marine life was going on in the area prior to the rare whale and oarfish beachings. The press and public would then have a more viable theory to consider than a strange current disorienting and moving creatures out of the depths they usually frequent.