Pete Thomas Outdoors

Footballfish? Rarely seen denizen washes ashore at Newport Beach

By Pete Thomas/ForTheWin Outdoors

A man walking on a Southern California beach Friday discovered a well-preserved carcass of a bizarre-looking fish that typically resides at depths of 2,000-plus feet.

The extraordinary discovery of what has since been identified as a female Pacific footballfish, a type of anglerfish, was made by Ben Estes at Crystal Cove State Park in Newport Beach.

Images of the 18-inch anglerfish were captured by Estes and Crystal Cove employees, and shared to Facebook on Saturday by Davey’s Locker Sportfishing & Whale Watching.

It’s been identified as a deep-sea Pacific footballfish, which is a species of anglerfish that normally dwell at depths more than 3,000 ft below the surface,” Davey’s Locker wrote. “It’s one of more than 300 living species of anglerfish from around the world. Though the fish itself is not rare, it is extremely rare to see one this intact along a beach in southern CA.”

ALSO ON FTW OUTDOORS: Boaters swim with giant basking sharks during rare encounter off San Diego

Encounters with anglerfish are exceedingly rare because of the extreme, lightless depths at which they reside.

In 2014, scientists with the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute captured ROV footage of an anglerfish swimming 2,000 feet below the surface.

Dr. Bruce Robison of MBARI described the anglerfish as being “among the most rarely seen of all deep-sea fishes.”  Robison described the footage as first of its kind. The 3.5-inch fish was collected for study.

In 1985 a Pacific footballfish was caught in a fisherman’s net in Monterey Bay and collected by the California Academy of Sciences. The Cabrillo Marine Aquarium in San Pedro also has one on exhibit.

Most species of anglerfish measure less than 12 inches. They’re called anglerfish because first spine of their dorsal fins, called the illicium, extends outward and contains a phosphorescent bulb intended to lure prey.

They snatch up prey, usually small fish or squid, with long, sharp teeth.

While anglerfish fish are rarely observed, many will find them to look familiar based on a scene in the popular animated movie “Finding Nemo,” in which Marlin and Dory are entranced by the glowing light and narrowly escape capture.

The Pacific footballfish discovered Friday was collected by the California Department of Fish and Wildlife and it was unclear Saturday where it would end up.

–Images are courtesy of Ben Estes and Crystal Cove State Park

Great white shark tries to swim into divers' cage

*Click on this link to view an updated post with a second video and input from Mexico

By Pete Thomas

Disturbing video has surfaced showing a great white shark becoming stuck in a cage with divers inside at Mexico’s Guadalupe Island. 

Mexican activist Arturo Islas Allende shared the video to his social media platforms under a title that translates to “Negligence kills white shark.” He implicated a Nautilus Dive Adventures vessel and complained that cage openings were not adjusted in a manner to keep sharks and divers safe.

 

The divers, who were clearly frightened as the massive predator writhed its head gets stuck in a cage opening, were not injured. It remains unclear whether the shark, in fact, perished after its ordeal.

Nautilus Liveaboards had not responded to inquiries about the incident, which occurred in October, at the time of this post.

Guadalupe Island is seasonal home to dozens of adult great white sharks, and regarded as one of the world’s premier shark-diving destinations. In typical situations, crews on the vessels will pull baits toward cages so divers in the cages can photograph the sharks in close quarters.

Crews are not allowed to feed the sharks, and cages must meet specifications set by Mexico.

Michael Domeier, president and executive director of the Marine Conservation Science Institute, has conducted extensive shark research at Guadalupe Island. Many sharks are identifiable based on distinctive markings and are part of an expansive database.

Domeier said the shark in the video is named Stouffer.

Domeier declined to guess why the shark tried to get inside the cage, but added: “It doesn't look to me like the bait was too close. For some reason that shark wanted what was in the cage. It hit the cage, backed up, then charged again. It could have turned and swam away.”

 

San Diego whale watchers encounter giant Mola mola

By Pete Thomas

For a group of San Diego whale watchers on Tuesday, the highlight did not involve whales or dolphins, but a bizarre-looking Mola mola.

The surprise encounter occurred 10 miles southwest of Mission Bay as Capt. Domenic Biagini, of Gone Whale Watching San Diego, was searching for cetaceans.

The Mola mola, or ocean sunfish, stood out because of its immense size and pale coloration as it lolled beneath the surface.

“It was really neat because most of the people on the boat specialized in diving, so this whole trip was something different for them,” Biagini said. “Right as they got on the boat they asked about molas, and I explained how we haven’t seen that many this year. So for this to have happened on this specific trip made it that much more special.”

Mola molas are the world’s largest bony fishes (these do not include sharks or rays) and can measure up to 14 feet and weigh 5,000 pounds. They inhabit tropical and temperate seas and feed primarily on sea jellies, squid, small fish, and crustaceans.

Because of their truncated bodies, the position of their fins, and their odd-shaped mouths, their appearance is otherworldly. Or, as the Monterey Bay Aquarium states on its website, “Ocean sunfish, or molas, look like the invention of a mad scientist.”

Biagini said most Mola molas encountered off Southern California measure 2 to 3 feet, but the sunfish that swam around his boat for 10 minutes on Tuesday measured at least 7 feet.

“It was by far the largest I’ve ever seen,” he said.

The divers on the boat were so impressed that some were tempted to jump in for a swim with the docile critter. “It was hard keeping them in the boat,” Biagini joked. “But everyone behaved.”

–Images courtesy of Gone Whale Watching San Diego

Harsh criticism as Icelandic whalers appear to have killed endangered blue whale

Blue whale at processing plant. Photo: Arne Feuerhahn/Hard to Port

By Pete Thomas

Iceland’s controversial whaling program fell under harsh attack this week when it was revealed that whalers had likely killed an endangered blue whale.

Environmental groups have shared photos of the dead whale at a processing facility. Some experts are unsure whether the mammal is a blue whale or a blue whale-fin whale mix.

Blue whales and fin whales are endangered species, and hunting them commercially is a flaunt of international law.

Icelandic whalers have spent the past several weeks hunting fin whales, under national permits, for the first time in three years. The whalers are not authorized to kill blue whales.

Photo: Hard to Port

The meat of fin whales is sold to Japan, which also has a controversial whaling program.

Sea Shepherd, which has been monitoring activity at Iceland’s whaling station in Hvalfjordur, reported Wednesday that the blue whale was killed July 7. (Sea Shepherd did not mention the possibility of a hybrid whale.)

Sea Shepherd claims that the blue whale kill is in addition to the slaughter by Icelandic whalers of 21 fin whales by the company Hvalur hf.

“No other nation – not even Japan or Norway – slaughters fin whales, and there has not been a blue whale harpooned by anyone for the last 50 years until this one was harpooned by the [vessel] Hvalur 8,” Sea Shepherd stated.

The group Whale and Dolphin Conservation (WDC) reported the blue whale kill under a headline, “Icelandic Whalers Breach International Law and Kill Iconic, Protected Blue Whale By Mistake.”

The WDC report stated that the whale was first spotted as it was positioned on a ramp by Arne Feuerhahn, a German conservationist, who noted that the massive mammal “was strikingly different in appearance to a fin whale.”

Marianne Rasmussen, a scientist with Project Blue Whale, told the WDC: “Based on the physical appearance and coloration of the lower jaw and baleen plates, it cannot be a fin whale. The mottled-grey coloration of the body points toward a blue whale, so the whale in question is either a blue whale or a blue/fin hybrid, genetics can confirm this.”

The nonprofit Hard to Port, headed By Feuerhahn, has been following the whaling effort on its Facebook page, and has shared links to a handful of reports by Iceland-based news sites.

Blue whales are the largest creatures on the planet; they can measure 100 feet and weigh nearly 200 tons. Fin whales are the second largest whale species. Both species were hunted to the brink of extinction during the whaling era.

The International Whaling Commission adopted a moratorium on commercial whaling in 1982, but a handful of countries oppose the ban and still conduct limited whaling operations.

–Whale images courtesy of Hard to Port

Orcas and freedivers mingle off Cabo San Lucas in rare and mesmerizing encounter; video

Video screen grab

By Pete Thomas

Freedivers off Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, spent nearly three hours Friday in the company of curious orcas.

The accompanying footage, captured by Regi Domingo of Pelagic Safari, shows one orca remaining almost totally motionless in a vertical position for several seconds while watching a diver and his camera.

 

Domingo said the encounter occurred five miles offshore, in the Sea of Cortez, and that the sleek mammals seemed as mesmerized as the divers were.

The company wrote on Facebook: “Believe it or not... Cabo San Lucas! An absolutely epic day on the water. Orcas in Baja are like the holy grail and yesterday we were fortunate enough to have three hours of playtime with a friendly pod.”

There were at least a dozen orcas, or killer whales, and all but one juvenile were females, Domingo said.

Photo courtesy of ©Pelagic Safari

She added that this family unit has been spotted recently elsewhere in the Sea of Cortez, feeding on a type of rays called mobulas, as well as small sharks and humpback whale calves.

The female orcas were protective of the juvenile male, but curious of the divers.

“They were exhibiting really interesting behaviors with us,” Domingo said. “They were staying vertical, checking us out. But they were super calm.”

Photo courtesy of @Pelagic Safari

They would drift back, and come back in for close looks at the divers. Some would open their mouths slightly while looking at the divers in what Domingo described as “strange movements.”

On Monday, the same orca family unit was spotted off La Paz, 70 miles to the north, but the Cabo San Lucas diving community is hopeful that the iconic mammals will return.

Mobula rays, known for their spectacular leaping abilities, are found throughout the southern Sea of Cortez.

Octopus battles rival octopus in shipwreck 6,000 feet below the surface; video

By Pete Thomas

Scientists monitoring the Gulf of Mexico sea floor documented a recent battle between sea creatures inside a shipwreck 6,000 feet deep.

“He’s breaking apart the wreck,” one of the NOAA scientists notes in the accompanying footage, which was captured last Friday via ROV, run by a crew aboard the Okeanos Explorer.

 

The researchers jokingly refer to the first creature as a Kraken, a mythical sea monster, but quickly identify the animal as a muse octopus. (See Facebook post.)

The camera follows the octopus as it enters a ship wreck and unsuccessfully battles another muse octopus for control of the prime hiding space. At one point, slithery arms grasp and tear wood from the shipwreck. 

"Guys, if you could have your creature stop tearing apart the shipwreck, that’d be great,” comes a request from shore-based scientists following along. After a losing battle, the first octopus returns to the open sea floor and appears to throw a tantrum, by wriggling in the sand.

“He’s just very upset that he couldn’t take that hiding spot from the other octopus,” a scientist narrates. The octopus, turning from pink to bright red in the lights of the ROV, ultimately swims out of range.

The Okeanos Explorer crew will be studying deep-sea habitats in the Gulf of Mexico through May 3.

–Images are video screen grabs. Second image shows battle inside the shipwreck

 

Popular Bali dive spot fills with plastic pollution; disturbing scene captiured on video

By Pete Thomas

Video showing a scuba diver’s eerie swim through a sea of garbage off Bali this week vividly illustrates the alarming extent of plastic in our oceans.

Rich Horner used a pole-cam off Manta Point to show the extent to which non-biodegradable plastic and other garbage flows the currents around Bali and other Indonesian islands.

Manta Bay is a renowned diving and snorkeling destination. Giant mantas utilize the bay as a cleaning station – where tiny fish remove their parasites – and represent the primary allure for divers. But on this day it seemed best for humans and mantas to avoid the area or risk becoming ill.

“The ocean currents brought us in a lovely gift of a slick of jellyfish, plankton, leaves, branches, fronds, sticks, etc.... Oh, and some plastic,” Horner wrote on Facebook.

“Some plastic bags, plastic bottles, plastic cups, plastic sheets, plastic buckets, plastic sachets, plastic straws, plastic baskets, plastic bags, more plastic bags, plastic, plastic, so much plastic!” Horton, a Bali resident, added: “Surprise, surprise, there weren't many Mantas there at the cleaning station today... They mostly decided not to bother.” 

Giant mantas inhabit tropical waters around the world. 9News reports that the nation last year pledged to spend $1 billion per year to reduce this type of pollution.

The scene provided by Horton is reminiscent of a scene presented five years ago by Zak Noyle. The surfer-photographer’s images showed large pollution-filled waves breaking over the heads of other surfers.

As bad as the pollution problem was during Horton’s dive, he said currents swept the area clean the following day. “As expected, the next day, what the currents bringeth, the currents taketh away!” Horton wrote.

“The divers who went to Manta Point today report they saw no plastic/trash at all. Great for the mantas coming in for a clean at the station, but, sadly the plastic is continuing on its journey, off into the Indian Ocean, to slowly break up into smaller and smaller pieces, into microplastics. But not going away.”

Scuba divers enjoy face-to-face encounter with gray whale off Monterey (video)

Video screen grab shows how close the whale was to the divers

By Pete Thomas

Scuba divers could barely contain their excitement during a rare face-to-face encounter with a gray whale Sunday off Monterey, Ca.

Ben Laboy and Nicole Guido-Estrada were part of an expedition with Bamboo Reef Scuba Diving Centers when the curious mammal approached, as the divers screamed with glee through their breathing gear.

“Had the experience of a lifetime this morning when a gray whale came up to say hi to me and Nicole on our boat dive at McAbee Pinnacle in Monterey Bay!” Laboy wrote on Facebook. “I will never forget looking into the eye of this majestic animal!”

Reached via email, Laboy said the encounter occurred at a depth of about 40 feet, not far from fabled Cannery Row in downtown Monterey.

“I had seen something behind Nicole, and was squinting at it for a solid 5-10 seconds trying to figure out if it was moving or not," Laboy said. "And then when it materialized, we both realized it was an animal, and that's about where the video starts."

Asked what they were screaming into their masks, Laboy said, “I think I was just saying, ‘Oh my god, that's a whale!” and Nicole probably exclaimed something a bit more colorful, haha.”

Alisa Schulman-Janiger, a California-based whale researcher, said the gray whale’s behavior appeared to stem from curiosity. The divers did not seem to be in danger.

A Bamboo Reef spokesman said two others in a group of 10 also saw the whale.

The gray whale population is estimated to number about 29,000. The mammals, which can measure to about 50 feet and weigh up to 40 tons, are migrating from summer feeding grounds in Arctic waters to winter nursing lagoons in Baja California, Mexico.

The southbound migration is currently peaking off Central and Southern California.

On Sunday, Monterey Bay Whale Watch reported multiple sightings Sunday and posted video clips showing the barnacled cetaceans migrating along the coast (clip posted above).

Surfer buzzed by shark off San Francisco; catches encounter on video

By Pete Thomas

A surfer paddling for a wave Tuesday off San Francisco was surprised to see a large fin slicing the water just a few feet away. “I thought I got this peak for myself, until [this] old mate came from the bottom,” Ignacio Salazar wrote on Facebook and Instagram. 

The likely shark encounter occurred off Ocean Beach as a north swell delivered waves in excess of 15 feet. (Viewers can see the fin – and hear the sound it generates – within the first 10 seconds.)

Salazar told me he was using a mouth-mount for the camera, and that he somehow remained calm despite the presence of what friends later told him was a great white shark.

“My reaction for some reason was to observe and be calm,” Salazar said. “I guess I learned that skill from big-wave surfing. So at the same time, I thought there was no reason to panic or scream, as there was no one around.”

It’s difficult to identify the species based on such a quick glimpse of the fin, but white sharks feed in Bay Area waters during late fall and winter.

Drew Scerbo, a marine biologist and scientific adviser for White Shark Interest and Advocacy Facebook pages, told me he could not even verify that the critter was a shark.

However, Keith Poe, a prominent California shark tagger, said it looks like the fin of a white shark.

Said Salazar: “I’m not sure about it. People say it’s [a white shark], but as I said I’m very amateur with knowledge of shark fins.” 

The surfer added that the fin was in the back of his mind as he jockeyed for the incoming set. “As I was observing to see any other signs of shark fins, I could not see any more,” Salazar said.

Tropical Storm Lidia a growing concern for Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur

By Pete Thomas

Folks in Cabo San Lucas and throughout the Mexican state of Baja California Sur are keeping a close eye on the trajectory of Tropical Storm Lidia.

Lidia, which on Wednesday afternoon was generating heavy rain over southwestern Mexico, is the first Eastern North Pacific storm of 2017 poised to impact the resort areas at Baja California's tip.

RELATED: Los Cabos deals with Hurricane Odile aftermath; photos

Though Lidia is not expected to attain hurricane strength (sustained gusts of 74 mph or stronger), hurricane watches (hurricane conditions possible) and tropical storm warnings have been issued by Mexico. The Florida-based National Hurricane Center listed them as follows in its 6 p.m. update on Wednesday:

A Hurricane Watch is in effect for...

• Baja California Sur from Puerto Cortes to east of La Paz

A Tropical Storm Warning is in effect for...

• Baja California Sur from Puerto Cortes to San Evaristo
• Mainland Mexico from Bahia Tempehuaya to Huatabampito

A Tropical Storm Watch is in effect for...

• Baja California Sur from north of San Evaristo to Loreto
• North of Puerto Cortes to Puerto San Andresito

Lidia, which late Wednesday boasted winds of 40 mph, is expected to arrive near Baja California’s tip late Thursday or early Friday.

Tracy Ehrenberg, general manager of Pisces Sportfishing in the Cabo San Lucas marina, said Wednesday evening via email that boats were ordered back in port before a 1 p.m. port closure.

“A squall blew through that lasted 10 minutes, then it settled again,” Ehrenberg said. “So far just one rain shower that lasted five minutes at most. It’s cloudy but really no wind and seas are not bad on the Pacific… up to, say, 10-15 mph.”

Mark Rayor, owner of Jen Wren Sportfishing in the East Cape region on the Sea of Cortez, added: "Nothing alarming so far. Just hope the forecast is right and it doesn’t spool up.  Kinda like a rattlesnake: doesn’t look that bad but you never know when it will get pissed off."

 –Graphic via the National Hurricane Center

Rescued humpback whale had been tangled in crab-fishing gear from Washington State

By Pete Thomas

The next time you enjoy a plate of steaming Dungeness crab, consider the plight of a young humpback whale that was rescued Sunday off San Clemente, Calif.

The 25-foot juvenile whale had become entangled, perhaps several weeks ago or longer, in crab-fishing gear from Washington State. Ropes attached to floats were wrapped tightly around the base of the whale’s tail fluke, and around parts of its upper body, including its mouth.

The mammal carried the gear more than 1,200 miles, and it remains unclear how effectively the whale was able to feed.

The first attempt to rescue the whale occurred late Saturday off Palos Verdes in Los Angeles County. A disentanglement team from Marine Animal Rescue attached a telemetry buoy, but could not remove the gear before darkness fell.

The telemetry buoy enabled rescue teams, in an effort led by Justin Viezbicke of NOAA Fisheries, to locate the whale Sunday morning off San Clemente, in south Orange County.

Units from the Pacific Marine Mammal Center, SeaWorld, and Marine Animal Rescue worked for several hours, according to those monitoring the rescue effort, before the whale swam away with only a single line trailing its mouth.

Viezbicke, California Stranding Network Coordinator for NOAA Fisheries, had not responded to a request for a statement at the time of this post.

However, Viezbicke told the Orange County Register: “The prognosis is guarded. It will depend how the remaining line affects [the whale's] foraging.”

Last year there were 71 reported cases of entangled whales off the U.S. West Coast (54 were humpback whales). It was the highest annual total since NOAA Fisheries began keeping records in 1982. Of the 71 reported entanglements, 48 were confirmed by NOAA.

Last year, according to NOAA Fisheries, there was a sharp increase in the number of entanglements associated with the Dungeness crab fishery. However, entanglements also involve gillnets, spot prawn-fishing gear, sablefish trap gear and lobster trap gear.

–Top photo is a generic humpback whale fluke, by ©Pete Thomas; second image shows the entangled humpback whale Saturday off Palos Verdes, by ©Erik Combs/Harbor Breeze Cruises.