The incident occurred a few hundred yards off the Coromandel Peninsula.

The orca, whose tail had become ensnared by the rope, had been crying out to nearby family members.  But Rhys Cochrane, a veteran diver, managed to cut the rope and allow the orca to rejoin its companions.

"He didn't seem to mind or maybe even knew that I was trying to help him," Cochrane told 3 News.

The accompanying video is from Good Morning America. The 3 News report, which does not offer an embed code, contains more footage and detail (click on the 3 News link to watch).

Said Cochrane: "The whole time he was calling; I could hear vivid calls from the orca and just at the end there were five or six orcas including the bull."

-- Pete Thomas

Note from the Marine Mammal Institute: "This research was conducted by A.N. Severtsov Institute of Ecology and Evolution of the Russian Academy of Sciences (IEE RAS) and Oregon State University Marine Mammal Institute in collaboration with the U.S. National Marine Fisheries Service, Kronotsky State Nature Biosphere Reserve and the Kamchatka Branch of the Pacific Institute of Geography. The research was contracted through the International Whaling Commission (IWC) and International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) with funding from Exxon Neftegas Ltd. and Sakhalin Energy Investment Company Ltd."

Josh Dueck's life as a skier, since he became a paraplegic during a crash in 2004, has been nothing short of inspirational.

Using a Sit-ski, he stayed on the slopes and became a top-level competitive skier, while also pioneering backcountry skiing on a device designed more for groomed runs in close proximity to chair lifts.

Last Friday, he realized a goal he had harbored since that fateful day eight years ago: Dueck performed what's believed to be the first-ever back flip on a Sit-ski.

The Solomon Freeski video is a quality production from start to finish, but those wanting only to see the trick can fast-forward to the 2-minute mark.

Dueck has named his sit-ski the Freedom Chair, and he stars in a documentary with the same title.

One of the carcasses was identified as a federally-endangered Stellar sea lion.

NOAA is asking that people who might have information about the killings call the agency's enforcement hotline at (800) 853-1964.

King 5 News in Seattle is reporting that the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society is offering a $10,000 reward to anyone who provides information leading to an arrest and conviction.

"This is a violation of U.S. Federal law and the person or persons responsible for these shootings must be apprehended and brought to justice," Sea Shepherd Capt. Paul Watson stated on the group's website.

Sea lions are protected under the Marine Mammal Protection Act. 

-- Sea lion image is courtesy of Pete Thomas

The millions who became captivated last year by the hatching and raising of three bald eaglets before a web-cam in Decorah, Iowa, might be interested to note that the egg watch is now on for a new season of bird drama and intrigue.

The parents of the eaglets, which have long since fledged, were seen mating this week, after having spent weeks rebuilding their nest (see video posted above).

If this season is anything like the last, millions of people from throughout the world can look forward to watching more eaglets breaking free of their eggs, being fed and protected by their parents, who will endure snow, rain and freezing winds.

There will be competition among the birds for food and parental care. They will be clumsy and ungainly at first, but will grow quickly and ultimately they will resemble birds that look capable of flying off to begin life on their terms.

The high-definition web-cam is even better than last year's and Bob Anderson and his Raptor Resource Project team are to be congratulated for serving up a second season of nature's greatest reality show.

Hopefully, the encore will be as entertaining. Below is the live camera feed. Enjoy:

The catch, made aboard the American Angler, gives Mikkelsen, who will be 81 next month, six yellowfin weighing 300 pounds or more—a feat that is unrivaled.

"I’ve been waiting for the next 300-pounder to come for 24 years," he said of his latest catch, made after a 30-minute battle that included several runs up and down the rail.

Mikkelsen caught his first "super cow" in 1980, a 321-pound yellowfin. His last, before the recent catch was, a 308-pounder boated in 1988.

As veteran long-range anglers are aware, these are specialized trips and not for the queasy or faint of hard. Giant yellowfin tuna are incredibly powerful and landing them requires strength and stamina.

Of course it helps to have high-tech fishing gear and multiple-speed reels, which were not available back in Mikkelsen's heyday.

"He made several runs up high, so I had to keep changing gears," Mikkelsen said.

The top catch aboard the American angler was a 320-pound tuna by Dennis Saylors.  It was Saylors' first super cow in 20 years of fishing on longe-range boats.

The American Angler was skippered by Brian Kiyohara, whose passengers landed 27 yellowfin weighing 200 pounds and three topping 300 pounds.

That's a lot of sashimi.

-- Pete Thomas

Photo: Ralph Mikkelsen (above right), poses with 306-pound tuna caught aboard the American Angler. Skipper Brian Kiyohara (in orange) is to the left of the fish. Credit: Bill Roecker / Fishingvideos.com

In support of the California Department of Fish and Game and its effort to keep hunters and anglers informed, Pete Thomas Outdoors, on Thursday or Friday, posts marine biologist Carrie Wilson's weekly California Outdoors Q&A column:

Question: I have been searching for any regulations specifically regarding slingshots but have found no clear reference to them within the Department of Fish and Game hunting regulations. As written, slingshots are not a legal method of take for any game. Yet there are inferences that under certain sections, such as Fish and Game Code, section 4186, that a slingshot would be considered a legal method of take. Further, varmints such as jackrabbit and ground squirrel do not fall under the regulations for fur-bearing mammals. I have not been able to find any source of reference on the DFG website or credible interpretation of the regulations by any warden or lawyer. Can you please provide clear references relating to the use of a slingshot for taking any game or non-game animals? (Ron Rios, Jr.)

Answer: Slingshots may only be used to take nongame birds and mammals (California Code of Regulations Title 14, section 475). However, the only nongame birds that may be taken by any method are English house sparrows and starlings (FGC, sections 3800(a) and 3801). There is also a crow hunting season, but crows may only be taken by shotgun, falconry or archery (CCR Title 14, section 485). Common nongame mammals ("varmint" is not a term used in Fish and Game law) that may be taken include coyotes, bobcats, opossums, ground squirrels and orange-belly marmots. Take of bobcat requires possession of a bobcat tag (CCR Title 14, section 478.1).

Rabbits and tree squirrels are game mammals, and their take with a slingshot is illegal. Nongame mammals are those species not otherwise categorized in the law as resident small game (CCR Title 14, section 257), big game (CCR Title 14, section 350) or fur-bearing mammals (FGC, section 4000). The complete Fish and Game Code is available online at: http://dfg.ca.gov/enforcement/.

Q: Is it true that spiny lobsters must be kept whole (and not tailed) until brought into our home and ready for immediate consumption? That’s what I just heard but I thought they just needed to stay whole until they could be brought ashore so that size can be determined. That’s what we’ve always done. Is it OK to tail them once ashore? (Jim A.)

A: Nongame animals causing crop or property damage do not require a depredation permit to be taken by the landowners and/or the specific people they have designated to work on their behalf to eliminate the offending animals. On public land, or in situations where the take is not for depredation by a landowner or agent, a hunting license is required.

Special precautions should be taken to ensure that any animals causing property/crop damage are not endangered species. If someone shoots/kills an endangered species, they will have to have evidence of the property damage or face significant fines and penalties.

In order to be considered an "agent" of the landowner, you will need written documentation from the landowner stating you are taking the nongame mammals on his or her behalf for depredation purposes. This will serve as proof that you have permission to be on private land and will eliminate the need for a hunting license. If you are in condor country, be sure to use non-lead ammunition. For more information on requirements for non-lead ammunition, please go to http://dfg.ca.gov/wildlife/hunting/condor/.

Q: While buying my license recently, I was told by the vendor that we no longer need to carry our fishing licenses with us. He said game wardens can now scan people’s California driver licenses to verify the purchase. Is this true? (Rick B.)

A: No, you are required to have your actual sport fishing license in possession while fishing (CCR Title 14, section 700) and to present your actual license upon request to any game warden who asks (FGC, section 2012). DFG game wardens do not carry California driver license scanners.

If you have a question you would like to see answered in this column, e-mail it to CalOutdoors@dfg.ca.gov.

Image of a black-tailed jackrabbit courtesy of U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

The fire burned more than 650 acres, but there were no reported injuries.

"A fire in a wildlife area filled with hunters could have been disaster," DFG Assistant Chief Paul Hamdorf said. "The wardens quickly apprehended the suspect and ensured everyone was evacuated safely."

It may never be known whether the fire was set to deliberately disrupt the hunt.

Thogmarton was booked into county jail on suspicion of felony arson.

Ash somehow became spooked and struck the window of another enclosure, then flew in a daze to the roof of yet another enclosure, before making a low flight across the lions' pen.

Ash landed to the side of the pen, but slipped and fell inside, whereupon nature took its course.

"Families were horrified when a female lion 'clubbed' the bird out of the air before a male pounced and devoured it in front of them," wrote Kiran Randhawa for the London Evening Standard.

Gavin Duthie was visiting with his 2-year-old son, Daniel, who burst into tears at the sight.

"Daniel was in tears along with most of the people who were there," Duthie told the newspaper. "Women and children were screaming but it was all over in seconds.

"It's in the lion's nature — I have taught Daniel that lions are not fluffy animals. He was very upset.

Zoo officials also were upset. A spokesman explained that "in 25 years of falconry displays nothing like this has occurred as the birds do normally instinctively know that this isn't a safe place to go."

It remains unclear what initially spooked the unfortunate bird of prey.

-- Image shows Ash the barn owl before the bizarre mishap claimed the popular zoo resident's life