WASHINGTON, Oct. 8 (UPI) -- A new study claims high powered sonar waves emitted from Navy ships are killing whales, dolphins and porpoises.
The study, published in Wednesday's edition of the journal, Nature, says the sonar causes painful and dangerous gas bubbles in some marine mammals causing them to beach themselves and die.
The conclusion is contained in a report on the deaths of 14 whales that were stranded in the Canary Islands last year.
The Washington Post reported an examination of the dead whales by British and Spanish researchers found a condition similar to "the bends" or decompression sickness in 10 of 14 animals.
Decompression sickness was previously unheard of in marine life, the researchers said.
A spokesman for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Fisheries Acoustics Team told the Post a meeting will be scheduled later this year to allow researchers to discuss the new findings.
