By Associated Press’s Jeanie Har
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — A California boat captain has recorded a unique video of a super pod of over 2,000 dolphins, including the more elusive northern right whale dolphin, breaching off the coast of Monterey Bay.
Evan Brodsky, a captain and filmmaker with the private boat tour firm Monterey Bay Whale Watch, saw northern right whale dolphins last week only 11 miles (18 kilometers) from the harbor. Normally, these species are seen farther out from coast and in deeper waters. One of only two dolphin species that lack a dorsal fin is the dolphin.
Brodsky jokingly remarked, “They’re all smooth.” “They look like flying eyebrows when they jump.”
Around noon on Friday, Brodsky and two other crew members were out doing research when they came across a dozen dolphins. Following the pod, they calculated that there were several hundred Pacific white-sided dolphins and over 2,000 dolphins, including light gray infant calves.
It was difficult for us to control our excitement. One of his colleagues could have cried at the sight, he added, adding, “We had the biggest grins from ear to ear.”
The nonprofit organization Whale and Dolphin Conservation states that pods of 100 to 200 northern right whale dolphins are the norm. They frequently mix with other dolphin species, such as Risso’s dolphins, of which Brodsky shot a super pod on drone last month. They are outgoing and very social.
According to Brodsky, adults weigh more than 200 pounds (90 kilograms) and are roughly 10 feet (3 meters) long.
According to Colleen Talty, a marine biologist with Monterey Bay Whale Watch, visitors travel from all over the world to try to spot a northern right whale dolphin in the bay’s deep underwater canyons. San Francisco is roughly 120 miles (193 kilometers) south of Monterey.
According to her, the dolphins may be congregating to socialize, graze on the same food, or ward off predators.
“That’s pretty nice,” she observed, “because we don’t always see baby dolphins.”
The Associated Press
