Sea creature spotted in California bay for first time since 2013. See the photos
.jpg "A group saw a “rare” sighting while whale watching in California, the company wrote on Facebook.")
Onlookers spotted a ‘rare’ sea creature off the coast of California.
The Monterey Bay Whale Watch was wrapping up their day and heading back into the harbor after leaving a pair of humpback whales, according to a Nov. 17 Facebook post by the group.
While heading into the harbor, they spotted what they thought was either a carcass or a mola mola, onlookers said, as a few gulls were lingering around it.
As they got closer and saw two fore flippers and a shell, they realized it was a sea turtle, the post said.
That’s when they called local researchers who believe it was a species of turtle called an olive ridley, officials said.
The group not only spotted the turtle, whose species hasn’t been seen in Monterey Bay since 2013, but also 14 humpback whales, 75 Risso’s dolphins and 25 Pacific white-sided dolphins on their tour route, officials said.
Olive ridleys, the world’s smallest sea turtles, get their name from their olive color and heart-shaped shell, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
The Monterey Bay waters aren’t warm enough for olive ridley turtles, which are typically found in more tropical waters, so the group is hoping the visiting turtle stays safe, the post said.
Monterey is about a 120-mile drive southeast of San Francisco.
This story was originally published November 18, 2024 at 9:48 AM with the headline "Sea creature spotted in California bay for first time since 2013. See the photos."