HONOLULU — Military officials said Wednesday they had not yet confirmed the identity of a U.S. Marine seen throwing a puppy off a rocky cliff in a disturbing video that has created a furor on the Internet.

The Marine's purported name was uttered in the video and has been widely circulated online. The name matches a 22-year-old lance corporal at Kane'ohe Bay, a member of the 1st Battalion, 3rd Marine Regiment, which returned from Iraq in October.

A working phone number for the Marine or his family could not be found and individual Marines are not listed in the base directory.

"We are not confirming he is in the video," said Maj. Christopher Perrine, spokesman for Marine Corps Base Hawaii.

Perrine said he didn't know whether the Marine had been questioned since the investigation was launched Monday.

"Our investigators will conduct a thorough investigation to determine the authenticity of the video, to determine who was involved and what the appropriate action needs to be taken," Perrine said.

The 17-second video sparked sharp condemnation and widespread outrage in addition to the military investigation. There are questions surrounding the video, including whether the animal was alive when it was tossed.

The low-quality video shows two Marines smiling and joking before one hurls the puppy into a rocky gully. A yelping sound is heard as it flips through the air.

The Marine shrugs his shoulders when a man off camera called the act "mean."

When asked why officials believe the Marines are based in Hawai'i, Perrine responded: "Because there's allegations on the World Wide Web it's a Kane'ohe Marine."

Animal-rights groups said they have been flooded with e-mails and calls about the video, which was viewed tens of thousands of times before it was taken down by YouTube.com "due to terms of use violation."

"The men shown in this video are a disgrace to their unit and their country," said Daphna Nachminovitch, vice president of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals. "The suspects' deplorable action, regardless of whether the puppy was dead or alive, is conduct unbecoming of a Marine or any decent human being, for that matter."

PETA on Wednesday sent a letter to Col. Mark A. Dungan, commanding officer at Kane'ohe Bay, asking for swift and vigorous action as well as the establishment of a zero-tolerance policy for cruelty to animals.

If the video is confirmed to be authentic, PETA demanded the Marines involved be court-martialed and face the most severe penalties, including discharge from the service, if they are convicted.

In a statement Wednesday, the Marine Corps again called the video "deplorable and contrary to the high standards we expect of every Marine."

"The investigation will be thorough and will examine each person involved," it said in the statement. The Marine Corps added that no charges had been filed.

"In the event that any Marine is charged with an offense, he will be afforded the constitutional and due process protections guaranteed by the Uniform Code of Military Justice," the service said.