A famous and beloved 50-foot humpback whale washed up dead on a beach in California after she was hit and killed by a ship strike. The whale named Fran washed up on Halfmoon Bay on August 29, according to Whales of Guerrero. Fran was known to locals and research groups and was seen swimming off […]
Tag: Marine Mammal Center
Rare Deep-Sea Whale Washes Up on California Beach
A mysterious deep-sea whale washed up on a California beach on Sunday. The 16-foot beaked whale was discovered by a passerby at Mendocino County’s Jug Handle State Natural Reserve near Fort Bragg, which is 3.5 hours north of San Francisco, SFGate reported. Because beaked whales live deep beneath the waves and can dive down as […]
Man sentenced for shooting protected elephant seal dead on California coast
A man has been sentenced to three months in federal prison for shooting a protected northern elephant seal to death on the central California coast. Armed with a .45-caliber handgun and a flashlight, on the night of 2 September 2019 Jordan Gerbich, 30, opened fire on an elephant seal at a popular viewing area where […]
Mysterious California sea lion deaths linked to toxic synthetic chemicals
Sea lions in California had been dying of a mysterious cancer for decades. Now, scientists say they have finally uncovered the likely cause: toxic chemicals from industrial trash, pesticides and oil refinery waste. A team of mammal pathologists, virologists, chemists and geneticists have concluded that sea lions with higher concentrations of DDT, PCBs and other […]
“Weaners” get a second chance!
The Marine Mammal Center in Sausalito, California plays a critical role in the survival of many marine mammals along the northern and central California coast. Founded in 1975 on a former Nike Missile site in the Marin Headlands, it took in its first seven patients. Much has changed since then and the Center is now […]