woody with a view - 2-18-2013 at 11:12 AM
http://news.ca.msn.com/top-stories/super-mega-pod-of-dolphin...
Thousands of dolphins spanning across seven miles of ocean were sighted off the coast of San Diego on Thursday, a boat captain told NBC 7 San Diego.
Capt. Joe Dutra of Hornblower Cruises said he saw a “super mega-pod” of common dolphins Thursday around noon while he was on his daily tour. He said
the pod was more than seven miles long and five miles wide.
Dutra said the boat tour followed the pod for more than an hour and said he’s never seen anything like it.
“When you see something that is honestly truly beyond belief,” the captain said.
Guests aboard the boat started screaming and pointing when they first saw the school of adult and juvenile common dolphins. Dutra estimated there were
about 100,000 dolphins swimming in the area.
“They were coming from all directions, you could see them from as far as the eye can see,” he said. “I’ve seen a lot of stuff out here… but this is
the biggest I’ve ever seen, ever.”
Whale and dolphin watching tours have done particularly well this year, with dozens of animal sightings reported.
Marine mammal expert Sarah Wilkin said the reason the large pod might be there is because there’s plenty of food in the area, including sardines,
herring and squid.
“They’re attracted to kind of the same thing, they might wind up in the same place,” she said.
Though dolphins typically travel in groups of 200 or less, Wilkin said “super-pods” are not unheard of.
“They’re definitely social animals, they stick together in small groups,” she said. “But sometimes, the schools come together.”
Dutra, who’s been boating for decades, said he felt lucky to enjoy such a rare phenomenon.
“You had to be there to experience it,” he said. “It was truly spectacular.”
Hook - 2-18-2013 at 11:22 AM
That sounds amazing.
I have probably seen some pods in the SoC that MAYBE numbered 5-700.
But 100,000??
Must be a dolphin Woodstock or something...............
DianaT - 2-18-2013 at 11:25 AM
Wow and Kurt Vonnegut is not here to see this!
Pompano - 2-18-2013 at 11:45 AM
Great video! Great creatures!
About 1988, we were on a gunkhole & fishing trip in my Pompano cruiser from Coyote Bay to Agua Verde. We came across a solid pod of porpoise
stretching from horizon to horizon and at least 500 yards wide. We were all sitting on the flybridge, so we were looking at around 8 miles of
jumping porpoise.
Everyone was thrilled at this remarkable event! At any given moment we could see dozens leaping into the air. I have camcorder movies...but dammit,
no photos...grrr.
Here's a real HIGH JUMPER..
[Edited on 2-18-2013 by Pompano]
[Edited on 2-18-2013 by BajaNomad]
DianaT - 2-18-2013 at 11:56 AM
Off the topic, but Pompano, check your U2U --- your email has been hacked.
GREAT PHOTO and what a jump!
[Edited on 2-18-2013 by DianaT]
DENNIS - 2-18-2013 at 12:41 PM
I think it's called a "stampede.' I saw it happen in front of my house last year. A line of Dolphin, maybe five miles long, swimming and jumping,
churning the water all the way across the bay. Seemed like a million of them.
First time I'd ever seen or heard of this, and it was spectacular. Since then, I've heard of a few other stampedes here on the west coast.
watizname - 2-18-2013 at 08:22 PM
Saw something close, in Bay of LA in the late 80's. Simply amazing. Listening to their sounds, in a "pod" like that is equally amazing. 
Bajaboy - 2-18-2013 at 08:48 PM
I encountered something very similar a number of years ago while fishing off the Channel Islands....something I'll never forget. We were in a 22 ft
Randoncraft with dolphins surrounding us as far as one could see in any direction.
mulegemichael - 2-19-2013 at 09:02 AM
had the same experience just east of san marcos island a couple of summers ago...and surprisingly enough there were tons of dorado under them.
fishbuck - 2-19-2013 at 11:12 AM
I seen it happen a few times between Newport Beach and Catalina. I would estimate I've seen 10000 or so. Miles of them. Truly amazing.
BajaDanD - 2-19-2013 at 12:22 PM
Seen this once out past Catalina miles of dolphin moving fast watched them come from pretty far away couldn't believe what we were seeing. Soon we
were surrounded for as far as we could see. We were just drifting. Ive told friends about it over the years but they all think I'm exaggerating.
unbob - 2-19-2013 at 05:54 PM
OK, maybe not a "Super-mega-pod" - but a grundle of dolphins nonetheless ...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SIF3PyPdQkM