A lone beluga whale leisurely swam through San Diego Bay last week, baffling scientists. The staff here at Sharkophile are also shocked, so we are covering it here on our shark news site!
The sighting was unusual, mainly for two reasons.
- Beluga whales inhabit the arctic and subarctic seas and are social animals. Social groups of beluga whales are comparable to other pods of toothed-whales: orcas and dolphins.
- A genetic kinship study led by Florida Atlantic University’s Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute finds a similarity between beluga communities and human societies that they regularly interact with close kin, while frequently associating with more distantly related and unrelated individuals.
Scientists are still scratching their heads as to why the lone beluga whale was swimming so far from its usual range. Personally, I stand in awe at how unpredictable nature tends to be and there is beauty in that.
NatGeo covers this story and interviews marine mammologists about the sighting here.
