Orcas Kill Baby Gray Whale

A group of orcas kills a baby gray whale. In the meantime, rockfish and white sea bass are biting, and the barracuda should show up at any time.

In an extremely rare occurrence for Los Angeles County waters, about a dozen transient killer whales attacked and killed a baby gray whale off Point Vicente on Wednesday afternoon. According to Captain Carl Mayhugh aboard the whale-watch vessel Christopher out of Long Beach’s Harbor Breeze Cruises, the baby gray whale was already dead when he arrived, and the orcas had begun towing the whale’s carcass away. "At one point, the baby's face came out of the water, (its) jaws open, followed by a swirl of blood," Mayhugh said. The orcas, commonly known as killer whales, tried to drown the mother; however, she escaped, Mayhugh said. This is an extremely rare occurrence for the waters off Los Angeles and may well be the first documented orca kill …

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Nicole Mooradian

10:05 pm on Friday, May 11, 2012

Just added a YouTube video of the aftermath of the gray whale calf kill! It's pretty amazing.   more ›

Hennessey's Paddleboard Racing Schedule Set

The annual series of four races is sponsored by local company Hennessey's Inc.

Paddleboarders, take notice: the annual Hennessey's SUP and Paddleboard Racing Series schedule is set. The races, which are sanctioned by the World Paddle Association, are for stand-up and prone paddleboarders alike. Here are this year's races, according to the WPA and Hennessey's:   "The Hennessey Race Series isn’t just a bunch of races to us; we truly love what we do," Hennessey's Race Director Tim Ritter said in a statement posted on the WPA website. "Aside from the competition, each Hennessey event brings its own atmosphere that only a Hennessey event can, just ask around. We have been doing this for 17 years and we think that this year’s series may be one of the best yet." For more information, visit worldpaddleassociation.com and …

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Anglers Await Barracuda Bite

Rockfishing continues to be very good in the Santa Monica Bay.

Southern California anglers continue to experience good rockfishing as they await the beginning of the 2012 surface fishing season. There have been some encouraging signs south of the border as well as improving conditions in our local waters. The Tradition out of Redondo Sportfishing has been red hot in the Santa Monica Bay. Anglers have been catching limits of rockfish, sculpin and a few nice fat lingcod on most trips. Jimmy Bass from Tradition Sportfishing also believes that a barracuda bite is imminent. “Water temperatures have been up over 60 degrees and there are huge spots of bait around,” Bass said. “Good conditions and food are what you need for this whole thing to take off.”  Captain Andy Siratt of the Enterprise reported seeing …

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Diane Naletich

5:27 pm on Thursday, May 3, 2012

How fun!!!   more ›

Black Sea Bass Tows Man Out to Sea

Also in this week's fishing column: The Adventure Crew makes a rare catch, and a great Toronado trip departs Saturday for San Clemente Island.

Last weekend, a kayak angler got more than he bargained for when he snagged a giant black sea bass. Black Pearl skipper Ricky Perez was scanning the horizon at Pyramid Cove on San Clemente Island on Saturday morning and keeping a close on the dozen kayakers he had ferried over to the island the night before. The group, organized by Andy Allen from OEX in Sunset Beach, makes monthly mother-ship voyages on the Black Pearl to a variety of Southern California fishing hot spots. Perez had become concerned as three members of his flock had stayed out to sea, about a mile from the island. There's no reason to be out there, thought Perez as he tried in vain to contact the threesome on Channel 71 by VHF radio. "They're not answering," said Perez. "…

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Fishing Report

2nd Wave of Gray Whales Heads North

More cow-calf pairs of gray whales are headed up the California coast while nighttime sand bass continue to bite.

It appears that more cow-calf pairs of gray whales are headed for Southern California waters on their northbound journey back to Alaska. In the longest mammalian migration known to man—8,500 to 12,500 miles—the leviathans are now departing the lagoons of Baja California and headed back to the nutrient-rich Bering Sea. The first wave of northbound whales passed by Southern California in March and continues to filter through and up the coast. Now, a second wave of these incredible creatures is making their way up the coast and should continue to delight Southern California whale watchers for weeks to come. According to Mexico's Secretariat of the Environment and Natural Resources, a record-setting number of gray whales was born in Baja …

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MB Resident Dies in SUV Rollover on Interstate

College freshman Rachel Kekauoha, whose parents and brother live in Manhattan Beach, was on her way to Lake Havasu when the SUV she was riding in rolled over several times and she was ejected.

Rachel Kekauoha, a Manhattan Beach resident, 2011 graduate of Mira Costa High School and freshman at Brigham Young University, Idaho, died Friday, April 6 around 3:27 a.m. when she was ejected from the vehicle she was riding in, Manhattan Beach Patch has confirmed. According to Dave Carter of the San Bernardino County Coroner's Office, Rachel was a front seat passenger in a 2000 Nissan Pathfinder SUV whose driver "over-corrected" after the vehicle began to drift off the road. She was not wearing a seat belt, he said. The rollover occurred on Interstate 40 in rural Ludlow, according to Carter. Rachel's father Kelland told MB Patch she was on her way to Lake Havasu. Rice Mortuary, 5310 Torrance Blvd., Torrance, will be the site of a public …

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Gray Whales Slurp Up Krill Off South Bay Shore

Sailors on the 30-foot vessel "Pegasus" are treated to something the likes of which they've never seen this close up. Two gray whales give them great video footage.

Out on yet another adventure for their ecommerce website HookBuzz.com last Friday afternoon, Clark McNulty and fellow sailors got a rare shot to watch gray whales eating krill near the ocean surface. About one mile off the Hermosa Beach coast and heading back to King Harbor Marina in Redondo Beach, their business film shoot turned into an encounter he'll always remember. "We were headed back into the harbor, when we spotted a two gray whales," he told Manhattan Beach Patch. "Both seemed to be smaller in size, maybe 25 feet long. They were zeroed in on the line of krill that were on the surface. The whales were literally coming up, opening their mouths and slurping up the krill. "I have never seen anything like it," said the seasoned diver…

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JV Girls Lacrosse Shines in Tournament

The Redondo Union High School girls junior varsity lacrosse team sweeps its bracket at an Orange County tournament.

When it comes to prep sports, the varsity team is usually the one in the spotlight. With its 6-2 overall record—5-1 in the Bay League—as of Thursday evening, the Redondo Union High School girls varsity lacrosse team is deserving of the limelight. But the junior varsity girls lacrosse team is shining, too. Under the direction of  coaches and Redondo alums Meesha Robinson and Tully Tampakes, the team took home top honors in the Silver bracket at the Sticks and Stones Tournament in Orange County last weekend. The team, which went undefeated over the past two years against Los Angeles-area teams, beat Esperanza, 4-3; Aliso Nigel, 6-3; and Carlsbad, 6-5. The leading scorers were Maddie Farmer (five goals), Jessica Veliz (four goals), Allison …

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