Watch: Mesmerising dolphin stampede off California coast on Christmas Eve

A dolphin stampede of around 5,000 marine mammals wowed visitors to Dana Point in Southern California on Christmas Eve.

The pod was filmed in an area that was crowned the dolphin and whale-watching capital of the world in 2019, according to Capt. Dave’s Dolphin & Whale Watching Safari.

Stampedes occur when hundreds, sometimes even thousands of dolphins leap in and out of the water as they stampede forward in one direction "as if running from or to something at an astounding speed," the dolphin and whale-watching safari service said.