Dear colleagues,
My co-authors and I are very happy to share our new publication: "Sowerby’s
Beaked Whales (Mesoplodon bidens) in the Skagerrak and Adjacent Waters:
Historical Records and Recent Post-Mortem Findings.” You will find the open
access publication at: https://www.mdpi.com/2673-1924/3/3/18
<https://www.mdpi.com/2673-1924/3/3/18>
Stavenow, J.; Roos, A.M.; Ågren, E.O.; Kinze, C.; Englund, W.F.; Neimanis, A.
Sowerby’s Beaked Whales (Mesoplodon bidens) in the Skagerrak and Adjacent
Waters: Historical Records and Recent Post-Mortem Findings. Oceans 2022, 3,
250–267.
https://doi.org/10.3390/oceans3030018 <https://doi.org/10.3390/oceans3030018>
Abstract:
In contrast to sparse historical observational records, five Sowerby’s beaked
whales (SBW) stranded and died in Swedish waters between 2015 and 2020. Here we
summarize historical records of SBWs in the Skagerrak basin and adjacent
waters. The three recent stranding events from Sweden are described, and the
post-mortem findings, including diet analysis, from the five SBWs are
presented. Of 30 historical records of SBWs observations since 1869, 13 (43%)
were documented between 2010 and 2021, and records between July and November
were the most frequent. The recent stranding events occurred in October 2015 (n
= 1), August 2019 (n = 3) and July 2020 (n = 1). Four of the SBWs were examined
through necropsy, and one was sampled in the field. They were all sub-adults
and included a single female and four males. The causes of death were
emaciation, euthanasia due to traumatic injury, and live stranding of
undetermined cause. Two SBWs each had a focal bone lesion consistent with
osteomyelitis. Other findings included pox-like dermatitis, trauma, focal
granulomas in a lymph node and intestine, and ulceration of the stomach. CT
scans were performed on the heads of two animals, with inconclusive results.
Three SBWs had hard parts in the gastrointestinal tract that mainly consisted
of otoliths from several fish species. An eDNA-analysis confirmed and
supplemented the diet analysis, revealing 17 fish species in total, including
species not previously described as prey for SBW, such as Pleuronectidae spp.
The apparent increase in observational records since 2010 may indicate a shift
in SBW distribution or changing threats to these animals. Our results support
and expand theories on SBW movements and provide data on the biology and health
of this poorly known species, which are valuable for conservation and
legislation efforts.
All the best,
Jasmine
Jasmine Stavenow, MSc Ecology and Conservation biology
Programme manager | Department of Pathology and Wildlife Diseases
National Veterinary Institute, SVA
751 89 Uppsala, Sweden | +46 18-67 52 72, +46 76-767 44 93
sva.se <http://sva.se/> , jasmine.stave...@sva.se
<mailto:jasmine.stave...@sva.se>
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