textilet
Contributor
My brother and I dove at veteran's park in Redondo beach yeasterday morning and found something kind of amazing. We were down at 101 ft, it was a little soupy, and out of the darkness looms this...thing, lying on the muddy bottom. As we approached, it looked like maybe a very large dead fish, but once we were within 5 feet it became clear that it was the body of a dead dolphin. The skin was a little worse for wear, so it wasn't immediately obvious what species it was. The dolphin was about 4.5 ft long, and the head area was just skeletal from the neck forward but the elongate beak was clearly visible on the skull. The body was largely intact. As my eyes moved down the body i saw there was an area of damage on the ventral side of the caudal peduncle...i nearly messed my dry suit when i realized the "damaged area" was semi-circular, and about 12 to 14 inches across. All kinds of thoughts started running through my mind, but there was no way around it--this dolphin was bitten by a large shark. Putting my face up close, i thought i could actually discern a scalloped shape around the edge of the wound, with about 1 to 1 1/4 inch wide tooth marks.
I've read that Great Whites aren't supposed to be around this time of year, but I can't think of anything else that would have been able to impose that type of wound on a dolphin. I considered the possibility that the wound was post-mortem, but it appeared to be of the same vintage as the carcass itself--that is, the edges of the wound showed about the same degree of decay as the body as a whole.
I think this dolphin was killed by a great white, and not far from where we found it. I'd love to hear opinions on why this is or is not likely.
At anyrate, no one has to take my word for it. I assume the dolphin is still there, and i will gladly direct anyone to the spot so they can see for themselves. Also, we had a video camera with us, and though the lens had fogged over a bit, we turned the camera on and filmed the carcass. You can see everything you need to see despite the fogged lens. I will post a link to the film once my brother uploads it today.
This wasn't the prettiest thing I've ever seen underwater, but it was one of the most amazing. I am just constantly blown away by the stuff we find down there.
I've read that Great Whites aren't supposed to be around this time of year, but I can't think of anything else that would have been able to impose that type of wound on a dolphin. I considered the possibility that the wound was post-mortem, but it appeared to be of the same vintage as the carcass itself--that is, the edges of the wound showed about the same degree of decay as the body as a whole.
I think this dolphin was killed by a great white, and not far from where we found it. I'd love to hear opinions on why this is or is not likely.
At anyrate, no one has to take my word for it. I assume the dolphin is still there, and i will gladly direct anyone to the spot so they can see for themselves. Also, we had a video camera with us, and though the lens had fogged over a bit, we turned the camera on and filmed the carcass. You can see everything you need to see despite the fogged lens. I will post a link to the film once my brother uploads it today.
This wasn't the prettiest thing I've ever seen underwater, but it was one of the most amazing. I am just constantly blown away by the stuff we find down there.
