Ocean Sentry
(From mercurynews.com) San Francisco Bay Area, CA- Large number of dead harbor porpoises have been washing up on beaches in San Mateo County and elsewhere in the Bay Area this summer, and marine mammal experts are at a loss to explain what could be killing them. A total of 24 harbor porpoises — 12 males, 9 females, and three still in utero — have been discovered by beachcombers since early June, according to the Marine Mammal Center in Sausalito.One unusual factor is the fact that the harbor porpoises were young and old, male and female, said Jim Oswald, a spokesman for the Marine Mammal Center. “There”s a possibility that it”s domoic acid poisoning,” said Oswald, referring to the toxin produced by a particular kind of algae that, if ingested, causes severe brain damage or death in marine mammals.
