Stomach contents of sperm whales Physeter macrocephalus stranded in the North Sea 1990-1996
Stomach contents of 17 sperm whales Physeter macrocephalus stranded in Scotland and Denmark during 1990-96 were analysed. All were sub-adult or adult males and stranded between November and March. They had presumably entered the North Sea during their southward migration from feeding grounds in Arct...
Published in: | Marine Ecology Progress Series |
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Language: | English |
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1999
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Online Access: | http://hdl.handle.net/10553/49440 https://doi.org/10.3354/meps183281 |
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ftunivlaspalmas:oai:https://accedacris.ulpgc.es:10553/49440 2023-05-15T14:58:12+02:00 Stomach contents of sperm whales Physeter macrocephalus stranded in the North Sea 1990-1996 Santos, M. B. Pierce, G. J. Boyle, P. R. Reid, R. J. Ross, H. M. Patterson, I. A.P. Kinze, C. C. Tougaard, S. Lick, R. Piatkowski, U. Hernández-García, V. 55303663600 7202450331 15824940900 55976952500 7202351764 7003689898 35610440400 7005963778 7003611547 6603733921 6603374505 1999 http://hdl.handle.net/10553/49440 https://doi.org/10.3354/meps183281 eng eng 0171-8630 Marine Ecology - Progress Series 0171-8630 http://hdl.handle.net/10553/49440 doi:10.3354/meps183281 0033529350 294 281 183 Marine Ecology Progress Series [ISSN 0171-8630], v. 183, p. 281-294 Investigación Feeding ecology Cetacea Stranding Gonatus Cephalopoda 1999 ftunivlaspalmas https://doi.org/10.3354/meps183281 2020-01-22T00:08:07Z Stomach contents of 17 sperm whales Physeter macrocephalus stranded in Scotland and Denmark during 1990-96 were analysed. All were sub-adult or adult males and stranded between November and March. They had presumably entered the North Sea during their southward migration from feeding grounds in Arctic waters. Other studies indicate that the majority of the whales were apparently healthy. The diet of these whales was found to consist almost entirely of cephalopods, principally squid of the genus Gonatus (hereafter 'Gonatus', but probably G. fabricii, an oceanic species characteristic of Arctic waters). The other prey species identified were also mostly oceanic cephalopods: the squids Histioteuthis bonnellii, Teuthowenia megalops and Todarodes sagittatus and the octopus Haliphron atlanticus. Although these results are consistent with other recent studies in the area based on single stranded whales, they differ from results of work on whales caught during commercial whaling operations in Icelandic waters (1960s to 1980s) in that little evidence of predation on fish was found in the present study. Remains of single individuals of the veined squid Loligo forbesi, the northern octopus Eledone cirrhosa and the saithe Pollachius virens provided the only possible evidence of feeding in the North Sea. We infer that sperm whales do not enter the North Sea to feed. The timing, and large and uniform sizes of the Gonatus species eaten (most had mantle lengths in the range 195 to 245 mm), as estimated from measurements of the lower beaks, and the seasonality of the strandings is consistent with the whales having fed on mature squid, possibly spawning concentrations--as has recently been reported for bottlenose whales. Assuming that the diet recorded in this study was representative of sperm whales during the feeding season, as much as 500000 t of Gonatus could be removed by sperm whales in Norwegian waters each year and up to 3 times that figure from the eastern North Atlantic as a whole. Evidence from other studies indicates that Gonatus is an important food resource for a wide range of marine predators in Arctic waters. Other/Unknown Material Arctic North Atlantic Physeter macrocephalus Universidad de Las Palmas de Gran Canaria: Acceda Arctic Marine Ecology Progress Series 183 281 294 |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
Universidad de Las Palmas de Gran Canaria: Acceda |
op_collection_id |
ftunivlaspalmas |
language |
English |
topic |
Investigación Feeding ecology Cetacea Stranding Gonatus Cephalopoda |
spellingShingle |
Investigación Feeding ecology Cetacea Stranding Gonatus Cephalopoda Santos, M. B. Pierce, G. J. Boyle, P. R. Reid, R. J. Ross, H. M. Patterson, I. A.P. Kinze, C. C. Tougaard, S. Lick, R. Piatkowski, U. Hernández-García, V. Stomach contents of sperm whales Physeter macrocephalus stranded in the North Sea 1990-1996 |
topic_facet |
Investigación Feeding ecology Cetacea Stranding Gonatus Cephalopoda |
description |
Stomach contents of 17 sperm whales Physeter macrocephalus stranded in Scotland and Denmark during 1990-96 were analysed. All were sub-adult or adult males and stranded between November and March. They had presumably entered the North Sea during their southward migration from feeding grounds in Arctic waters. Other studies indicate that the majority of the whales were apparently healthy. The diet of these whales was found to consist almost entirely of cephalopods, principally squid of the genus Gonatus (hereafter 'Gonatus', but probably G. fabricii, an oceanic species characteristic of Arctic waters). The other prey species identified were also mostly oceanic cephalopods: the squids Histioteuthis bonnellii, Teuthowenia megalops and Todarodes sagittatus and the octopus Haliphron atlanticus. Although these results are consistent with other recent studies in the area based on single stranded whales, they differ from results of work on whales caught during commercial whaling operations in Icelandic waters (1960s to 1980s) in that little evidence of predation on fish was found in the present study. Remains of single individuals of the veined squid Loligo forbesi, the northern octopus Eledone cirrhosa and the saithe Pollachius virens provided the only possible evidence of feeding in the North Sea. We infer that sperm whales do not enter the North Sea to feed. The timing, and large and uniform sizes of the Gonatus species eaten (most had mantle lengths in the range 195 to 245 mm), as estimated from measurements of the lower beaks, and the seasonality of the strandings is consistent with the whales having fed on mature squid, possibly spawning concentrations--as has recently been reported for bottlenose whales. Assuming that the diet recorded in this study was representative of sperm whales during the feeding season, as much as 500000 t of Gonatus could be removed by sperm whales in Norwegian waters each year and up to 3 times that figure from the eastern North Atlantic as a whole. Evidence from other studies indicates that Gonatus is an important food resource for a wide range of marine predators in Arctic waters. |
author2 |
55303663600 7202450331 15824940900 55976952500 7202351764 7003689898 35610440400 7005963778 7003611547 6603733921 6603374505 |
author |
Santos, M. B. Pierce, G. J. Boyle, P. R. Reid, R. J. Ross, H. M. Patterson, I. A.P. Kinze, C. C. Tougaard, S. Lick, R. Piatkowski, U. Hernández-García, V. |
author_facet |
Santos, M. B. Pierce, G. J. Boyle, P. R. Reid, R. J. Ross, H. M. Patterson, I. A.P. Kinze, C. C. Tougaard, S. Lick, R. Piatkowski, U. Hernández-García, V. |
author_sort |
Santos, M. B. |
title |
Stomach contents of sperm whales Physeter macrocephalus stranded in the North Sea 1990-1996 |
title_short |
Stomach contents of sperm whales Physeter macrocephalus stranded in the North Sea 1990-1996 |
title_full |
Stomach contents of sperm whales Physeter macrocephalus stranded in the North Sea 1990-1996 |
title_fullStr |
Stomach contents of sperm whales Physeter macrocephalus stranded in the North Sea 1990-1996 |
title_full_unstemmed |
Stomach contents of sperm whales Physeter macrocephalus stranded in the North Sea 1990-1996 |
title_sort |
stomach contents of sperm whales physeter macrocephalus stranded in the north sea 1990-1996 |
publisher |
0171-8630 |
publishDate |
1999 |
url |
http://hdl.handle.net/10553/49440 https://doi.org/10.3354/meps183281 |
geographic |
Arctic |
geographic_facet |
Arctic |
genre |
Arctic North Atlantic Physeter macrocephalus |
genre_facet |
Arctic North Atlantic Physeter macrocephalus |
op_source |
Marine Ecology Progress Series [ISSN 0171-8630], v. 183, p. 281-294 |
op_relation |
Marine Ecology - Progress Series 0171-8630 http://hdl.handle.net/10553/49440 doi:10.3354/meps183281 0033529350 294 281 183 |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.3354/meps183281 |
container_title |
Marine Ecology Progress Series |
container_volume |
183 |
container_start_page |
281 |
op_container_end_page |
294 |
_version_ |
1766330282834657280 |