Dear MARMAM community,
On behalf of all authors, we are pleased to announce our recent publication in Sustainability: Guinn, M. A., Toms, C. N., Sinclair, C., & Orbach, D. N. (2024). Seasonal Prevalence of Skin Lesions on Dolphins across a Natural Salinity Gradient. Sustainability, 16(10), 4260. https://doi.org/10.3390/su16104260 ABSTRACT: Bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) inhabit waters across a broad natural salinity gradient and exhibit changes in skin condition based on the quality of their environment. Prolonged exposure to low salinities (≤10�C20 ppt) degenerates the epidermal barrier and causes cutaneous lesions in dolphins, while the role of high salinity exposure (>35 ppt) in lesion development remains unknown. We assessed seasonal lesion prevalence in three free-ranging dolphin stocks inhabiting coastal Gulf of Mexico (GoM) waters of different salinities (0�C30 ppt, 22�C35 ppt, and 36+ ppt) using images of dolphin bodies. Lesions were documented on 44% of the dolphins photographed (n = 432), and lesion occurrence was significantly related to cold seasons and water temperatures but not salinity. Cold water temperatures may heighten dolphin susceptibility to infectious pathogens and disease and compound the effects of anthropogenic pollutants in the GoM. As dolphins are a bioindicator species of marine habitat welfare, natural studies assessing dolphin skin may reveal environmental degradation with potential impacts on marine ecosystems and human health. Open access to the article is available at: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/16/10/4260 Do not hesitate to contact me if you have any questions. Best, Makayla Guinn, M.S. Ph.D. Student FABEMM Lab <https://jrich40.wixsite.com/tcbdolphinproject>
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