Pathological findings in stranded harbor porpoises (Phocoena phocoena) with special focus on anthropogenic causes
Humans impact natural systems at an unprecedented rate. The North Sea is one of the regions in the world with the highest levels of anthropogenic activity. Here, the harbor porpoise (Phocoena phocoena) is an abundant species and is often regarded as an ecosystem sentinel. A post-mortem surveillance...
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ftdoajarticles:oai:doaj.org/article:1714c4760aee48abbb98fedb6b901f9c 2023-05-15T17:59:10+02:00 Pathological findings in stranded harbor porpoises (Phocoena phocoena) with special focus on anthropogenic causes Lonneke L. IJsseldijk Mardik F. Leopold Lineke Begeman Marja J. L. Kik Lidewij Wiersma Maria Morell Elisa L. Bravo Rebolledo Thierry Jauniaux Hans Heesterbeek Andrea Gröne 2022-10-01T00:00:00Z https://doi.org/10.3389/fmars.2022.997388 https://doaj.org/article/1714c4760aee48abbb98fedb6b901f9c EN eng Frontiers Media S.A. https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fmars.2022.997388/full https://doaj.org/toc/2296-7745 2296-7745 doi:10.3389/fmars.2022.997388 https://doaj.org/article/1714c4760aee48abbb98fedb6b901f9c Frontiers in Marine Science, Vol 9 (2022) cetacean post-mortem investigation bycatch hearing damage infectious diseases ship strike Science Q General. Including nature conservation geographical distribution QH1-199.5 article 2022 ftdoajarticles https://doi.org/10.3389/fmars.2022.997388 2022-12-30T23:28:36Z Humans impact natural systems at an unprecedented rate. The North Sea is one of the regions in the world with the highest levels of anthropogenic activity. Here, the harbor porpoise (Phocoena phocoena) is an abundant species and is often regarded as an ecosystem sentinel. A post-mortem surveillance program was established in the Netherlands aimed at increasing knowledge of the effects of human activities on harbor porpoises. In this study, we describe the pathological findings related to anthropogenic and natural causes of death categories in 612 harbor porpoises that stranded between 2008 and 2019, and assess their relations to age, sex, season, and location. The largest anthropogenic category was bycatch (17%), with mainly juveniles affected and peak periods in March and September–October. Other, infrequently diagnosed anthropogenic causes of death were trauma (4%), largely most likely due to ship collisions, and marine debris ingestion and entanglement (0.3%). The risk of dying from anthropogenic causes was highest for juveniles. Lesions compatible with noise-induced hearing loss were investigated in carcasses which were fresh enough to do so (n = 50), with lesions apparent in two porpoises. Non-direct human-induced threats included infectious diseases, which were by far the largest cause of death category (32%), and affected mainly adults. Also, gray seal (Halichoerus grypus) attacks were a frequently assigned cause of death category (24%). There were more acute predation cases in the earlier study years, while porpoises with lesions that suggested escape from gray seal attacks were diagnosed more recently, which could suggest that porpoises adapted to this threat. Our study contributes to understanding porpoise health in response to persisting, new, emerging, and cumulative threats. Building up such knowledge is crucial for conservation management of this protected species. Article in Journal/Newspaper Phocoena phocoena Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles Frontiers in Marine Science 9 |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles |
op_collection_id |
ftdoajarticles |
language |
English |
topic |
cetacean post-mortem investigation bycatch hearing damage infectious diseases ship strike Science Q General. Including nature conservation geographical distribution QH1-199.5 |
spellingShingle |
cetacean post-mortem investigation bycatch hearing damage infectious diseases ship strike Science Q General. Including nature conservation geographical distribution QH1-199.5 Lonneke L. IJsseldijk Mardik F. Leopold Lineke Begeman Marja J. L. Kik Lidewij Wiersma Maria Morell Elisa L. Bravo Rebolledo Thierry Jauniaux Hans Heesterbeek Andrea Gröne Pathological findings in stranded harbor porpoises (Phocoena phocoena) with special focus on anthropogenic causes |
topic_facet |
cetacean post-mortem investigation bycatch hearing damage infectious diseases ship strike Science Q General. Including nature conservation geographical distribution QH1-199.5 |
description |
Humans impact natural systems at an unprecedented rate. The North Sea is one of the regions in the world with the highest levels of anthropogenic activity. Here, the harbor porpoise (Phocoena phocoena) is an abundant species and is often regarded as an ecosystem sentinel. A post-mortem surveillance program was established in the Netherlands aimed at increasing knowledge of the effects of human activities on harbor porpoises. In this study, we describe the pathological findings related to anthropogenic and natural causes of death categories in 612 harbor porpoises that stranded between 2008 and 2019, and assess their relations to age, sex, season, and location. The largest anthropogenic category was bycatch (17%), with mainly juveniles affected and peak periods in March and September–October. Other, infrequently diagnosed anthropogenic causes of death were trauma (4%), largely most likely due to ship collisions, and marine debris ingestion and entanglement (0.3%). The risk of dying from anthropogenic causes was highest for juveniles. Lesions compatible with noise-induced hearing loss were investigated in carcasses which were fresh enough to do so (n = 50), with lesions apparent in two porpoises. Non-direct human-induced threats included infectious diseases, which were by far the largest cause of death category (32%), and affected mainly adults. Also, gray seal (Halichoerus grypus) attacks were a frequently assigned cause of death category (24%). There were more acute predation cases in the earlier study years, while porpoises with lesions that suggested escape from gray seal attacks were diagnosed more recently, which could suggest that porpoises adapted to this threat. Our study contributes to understanding porpoise health in response to persisting, new, emerging, and cumulative threats. Building up such knowledge is crucial for conservation management of this protected species. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Lonneke L. IJsseldijk Mardik F. Leopold Lineke Begeman Marja J. L. Kik Lidewij Wiersma Maria Morell Elisa L. Bravo Rebolledo Thierry Jauniaux Hans Heesterbeek Andrea Gröne |
author_facet |
Lonneke L. IJsseldijk Mardik F. Leopold Lineke Begeman Marja J. L. Kik Lidewij Wiersma Maria Morell Elisa L. Bravo Rebolledo Thierry Jauniaux Hans Heesterbeek Andrea Gröne |
author_sort |
Lonneke L. IJsseldijk |
title |
Pathological findings in stranded harbor porpoises (Phocoena phocoena) with special focus on anthropogenic causes |
title_short |
Pathological findings in stranded harbor porpoises (Phocoena phocoena) with special focus on anthropogenic causes |
title_full |
Pathological findings in stranded harbor porpoises (Phocoena phocoena) with special focus on anthropogenic causes |
title_fullStr |
Pathological findings in stranded harbor porpoises (Phocoena phocoena) with special focus on anthropogenic causes |
title_full_unstemmed |
Pathological findings in stranded harbor porpoises (Phocoena phocoena) with special focus on anthropogenic causes |
title_sort |
pathological findings in stranded harbor porpoises (phocoena phocoena) with special focus on anthropogenic causes |
publisher |
Frontiers Media S.A. |
publishDate |
2022 |
url |
https://doi.org/10.3389/fmars.2022.997388 https://doaj.org/article/1714c4760aee48abbb98fedb6b901f9c |
genre |
Phocoena phocoena |
genre_facet |
Phocoena phocoena |
op_source |
Frontiers in Marine Science, Vol 9 (2022) |
op_relation |
https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fmars.2022.997388/full https://doaj.org/toc/2296-7745 2296-7745 doi:10.3389/fmars.2022.997388 https://doaj.org/article/1714c4760aee48abbb98fedb6b901f9c |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.3389/fmars.2022.997388 |
container_title |
Frontiers in Marine Science |
container_volume |
9 |
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1766167925637513216 |