MYSTERY OF THE DEEP: The extremely rare...

MYSTERY OF THE DEEP: The extremely rare megamouth shark captured off Dana Point last week is only the latest in a series of local marine oddities. . . . Over the past two years, usually rare sea turtles, sea otters, huge Risso’s dolphins, blue whale, sperm whale, minke whale, king salmon and giant squid have been sighted. On the other hand, normally plentiful sharks and white croakers are scarce. . . . What’s going on? “I don’t completely understand it,” says marine biologist Dennis Kelly of Orange Coast College, who has monitored the county’s sea life for 22 years. “Everyone wants answers, but we don’t have them.”