Boaters spot ‘extraordinary’ sea creature in California. See the ‘unreal’ encounter
Caitlyn Nieblas has seen a lot in her five years aboard boats in Dana Point, California.
The experienced naturalist — who works as a deckhand and photographer for Captain Dave’s Dana Point Dolphin and Whale Watching Safari — was on a tour Oct. 19 when something “extraordinary” happened, she told McClatchy News.
“We were on just one of our normal whale watch trips, and we were hanging out with a pod of common dolphins, which is a really normal sighting for area,” Nieblas said in a phone interview. “One of our crew...was talking on the microphone and giving facts to all of our passengers and he like stopped all of a sudden, and he looks at me and he goes, ‘I think I just saw northern right whale dolphin in this pod.’”
Nieblas said she “honestly didn’t believe him” and instead thought he must have actually seen a sea lion.
“We don’t normally see northern right whale dolphins in our area. They tend to be farther offshore,” she said. “There are some places you can see them closer to shore like Monterey, but they’re not normally seen in our area at all.”
Despite her hesitance, Nieblas went to check out the unusual-looking creature — and sure enough, it was a northern right whale dolphin.
“I went down to the front of the boat on the lower deck and I looked under my feet and there was a northern right whale dolphin swimming right under it,” Nieblas said.
Nieblas said it was her first time seeing one of the creatures. It’s only the second sighting the tour agency has recorded a sighting of the species in 20 years, according to an Oct. 19 Facebook post.
“We were over the moon to see it!” the agency said in a Facebook comment.
Like their namesake, northern right whales, the dolphins do not have a dorsal fin, the tour agency said.
Northern right whale dolphins are typically found in deep, cold to warm temperate waters in the Pacific Ocean, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. They usually travel in groups of 100 to 200, and they are sometimes seen swimming with other species of dolphins or whales.
“This dolphin just really stood out from the common dolphins,” Nieblas said. “The northern right whale dolphin is very dark, and very, like sleek and streamlined.”
Social media users were in awe of the creature.
“What a cool rare dolphin, almost unreal to actually see it on video under water and not on a poster or book,” one person commented.
“I’ve never seen this animal before,” another person wrote. “So cool.”
“That is truly incredible,” a third person commented. “I’ve never seen this mammal before. Absolutely amazing! How lucky you were to witness this encounter.”
Dana Point is about 60 miles southeast of downtown Los Angeles.
‘Mystic’ sea creature — with ‘snow-white’ body — spotted with her baby. See them swim
‘Rare’ sea creature and mom — both with ‘eyepatches’ — spotted in CA. See them swim
Watch ‘phenomenal stampede’ of sea creatures in California. ‘One for the books’
