Strong Sonars Can Make Dolphins Deaf Photo: Flickr, CC According
to an investigation into a suspected link between naval
operations and cetacean strandings (two weeks ago we wrote about
80+ whales and dolphins that beached themselves in Australia),
very loud blasts of sonar can cause a dolphin to temporarily
lose its hearing. "A paper published in the British journal
Biology Letters on Wednesday provides the first lab-scale
investigation into this idea, although its authors stress it
does not provide proof that warship sonar is to blame." Read on
for more details.Via Discovery News: Marine biologists led by
Aran Mooney at the University of Hawaii exposed a captive-born,
trained Atlantic bottlenose dolphin to progressively louder
pings of mid-frequency sonar. The experiment took place in open
water pens at the Hawaii Institute of Marine Biology and in the
presence of the dolphin's trainer. The scientists fitted a
harmless suction cup to the dolphin's head, with a sensor
attached that monitored the animal's bra