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Feb 22, 2008 7:47 am US/Eastern
Dolphin Found Dead During Navy Sonar Training
LOS ANGELES (CBS) ―
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Dolphins and whales are said to be harmed by sonar used by the Navy. (file)
Bob Care/Florida Keys News Bureau
A dolphin died on a Southern California beach during Navy sonar training exercises, but authorities say it is not immediately clear what caused its death.
The female northern right whale dolphin died at the end of January on the Navy-owned San Nicolas Island, about 75 miles west of Los Angeles.
The Navy's Third Fleet was conducting training that included sonar use at the time, reported CBS station KCBS-TV in Los Angeles.
Environmental groups have sued to limit naval sonar use that they fear can harm marine mammals, and a back-and-forth legal battles between the groups and the government, including President Bush himself, has ensued.
The Navy is appealing a ruling made by a federal judge earlier this month that said despite a presidential waiver, the service must comply with a no-sonar zone off the Southern California coast.
A necropsy performed on the dolphin in Santa Barbara found increased fluid in the dolphin's ears but did not pin down the cause of its death.
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