Community Corner

Sperm Whale Spotted off Palos Verdes

The whale was seen Monday by passengers aboard the Voyager.

Passengers on board the Voyager got a rare look at a sperm whale Monday as one of the creatures surfaced off the Palos Verdes Peninsula, Pete Thomas reported in his "Outdoors, action and adventure" blog.

The toothed whales aren't often seen off Southern California and this might be a reappearance of one that's been spotted a number of times since 1996.

"Presumably, this whale, estimated to measure 45-55 feet, is foraging in the depths of Redondo Canyon, which is said to be teeming with market-sized squid," Thomas wrote in the post.

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Read the full blog post here.

Because many of the sightings occurred in August and September, more sightings are likely this summer, he wrote.

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According to a Voyager passenger, the boat "managed to get about 100 yards from the whale, which was 'logging' on the surface, taking multiple breaths before revealing its towering fluke and making a dive that lasted 29 minutes."

This marks the second sperm whale sighting in Southern California this year, according to Thomas.

Just a day later, on Tuesday, passengers on board the Christopher saw about 10 blue whales at the Whiskey Buoy about five miles south of Pt. Fermin (see photos attached to this article).

The blue whales were extremely close to shipping lanes, said Alisa Schulman-Janiger. She cautioned all boaters and other watercraft to watch out for situations like this one in which whales are easily struck by ships and injured or killed.


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