VIDEO: Dozens of Super-Rare Sperm Whales Visit South O.C.

From a submission:

Whale watchers with Captain Dave’s Dolphin and Whale Safari in Dana Point  had an extremely unique sighting Monday when they encountered a very rarely seen giant pod of 60 to 100 sperm whales.

Passengers and crew were awestruck when the some of the sperm whales came over and “mugged” the Capt. Dave’s catamaran, which was stationary and in neutral. Passengers also had a once-in-a-lifetime look at the sperm whales from the boat’s eye-to-eye underwater viewing pods.

“I’ve never seen anything like this in my life and only once before have I ever seen a single sperm whale off Dana Point,” Captain Dave Anderson said. “They were stretched out over almost two miles, diving down, and then new whales surfacing nearby. We got some beautiful drone footage which I am saving for a project I am working on.

“It was so beautiful and at one point three whales swam straight at us. We had been sitting with the engine off for several minutes and they nearly torpedoed us! It really got my heart racing!”

Sperm whales can reach lengths of up to 59 feet and weigh up to 45 tons. They are the largest toothed whale and may be here feeding on giant Humboldt squid. Pods like those seen today are made up of mostly of adult females and sub-adult males. Female adult sperm whales usually roam away from the main group. S

Sperm whales can dive to depths of more than 3,300 feet, making them the second deepest diving marine mammal after the Cuvier’s beaked whale. Sperm whales can hold their breath for over an hour. They have the largest brain of any known animal on earth.

The whales were seen in about 10 groups of about eight to 12 whales each, spread over two to three miles just three miles off the Dana Point Harbor. The groups would surface for as long as 15 minutes at a time, occasionally approaching the boat to spy hop, roll, tail lob and fluke.

PHOTO Courtesy Captain Dave’s Dolphin and Whale Safari.

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