BREMERTON, Wash. The Navy says dolphins and sea lions will go on guard this year at the Bangor submarine base to detect any underwater swimmers who might approach the base on Hood Canal.

The Navy is keep security details secret, but the environmental impact statement for the project said there would be fewer than 20 animals, kept in enclosures with a water temperature of at least 52 degrees.

Marine mammals have been used as guards for years at the other Trident submarine base at King's Bay, Ga.

Navy spokesman Tom LaPuzza in San Diego told the Kitsap Sun that Atlantic bottlenose dolphins and California sea lions are ready to go on patrol at Bangor.

The dolphins can find an intruder and release a beacon. Sea lions can attach a cuff to a swimmer's leg.
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Kitsap Sun, http://www.kitsapsun.com/