Sometimes Sperm Whales (Physeter macrocephalus) Cannot Find Their Way Back to the High Seas: A Multidisciplinary Study on a Mass Stranding
Background: Mass strandings of sperm whales (Physeter macrocephalus) remain peculiar and rather unexplained events, which rarely occur in the Mediterranean Sea. Solar cycles and related changes in the geomagnetic field, variations in watertemperature and weather conditions, coast geographical featur...
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Online Access: | http://hdl.handle.net/11575/13161 https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0019417 |
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ftunivteramo:oai:research.unite.it:11575/13161 2024-04-14T08:18:24+00:00 Sometimes Sperm Whales (Physeter macrocephalus) Cannot Find Their Way Back to the High Seas: A Multidisciplinary Study on a Mass Stranding MAZZARIOL S PETRELLA A MARSILI L FOSSI M. C LEONZIO C ZIZZO N VIZZINI S GASPARI S PAVAN G PODESTA' M GARIBALDI F FERRANTELLI M COPAT C MARCER F AIROLDI S FRANTZIS A DE BERALDO QUIROS Y COZZI B FERNANDEZ A. DI GUARDO, Giovanni TRAVERSA, Donato Yes Mazzariol, S DI GUARDO, Giovanni Petrella, A Marsili, L Fossi, M. C. Leonzio, C Zizzo, N Vizzini, S Gaspari, S Pavan, G Podesta', M Garibaldi, F Ferrantelli, M Copat, C Traversa, Donato Marcer, F Airoldi, S Frantzis, A DE BERALDO QUIROS, Y Cozzi, B Fernandez, A. 2011 ELETTRONICO http://hdl.handle.net/11575/13161 https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0019417 eng eng info:eu-repo/semantics/altIdentifier/pmid/PMID: 21673789 info:eu-repo/semantics/altIdentifier/wos/WOS:000290720200005 volume:6(5): e19417 numberofpages:17 journal:PLOS ONE http://hdl.handle.net/11575/13161 doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0019417 info:eu-repo/semantics/altIdentifier/scopus/2-s2.0-79956205540 Sperm whale Cetacean mass stranding Multidisciplinary study info:eu-repo/semantics/article 2011 ftunivteramo https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0019417 2024-03-21T15:30:25Z Background: Mass strandings of sperm whales (Physeter macrocephalus) remain peculiar and rather unexplained events, which rarely occur in the Mediterranean Sea. Solar cycles and related changes in the geomagnetic field, variations in watertemperature and weather conditions, coast geographical features and human activities have been proposed as possible causes. In December 2009, a pod of seven male sperm whales stranded along the Adriatic coast of Southern Italy. This is the sixth instance from 1555 in this basin.Methodology/Principal Findings: Complete necropsies were performed on three whales whose bodies were in good condition, carrying out on sampled tissues histopathology, virology, bacteriology, parasitology, and screening of veinslooking for gas emboli. Furthermore, samples for age determination, genetic studies, gastric content evaluation, stable isotopes and toxicology were taken from all the seven specimens. The animals were part of the same group and determined by genetic and photo- identification to be part of the Mediterranean population. Causes of death did not include biological agents, or the ‘‘gas and fat embolic syndrome’’, associated with direct sonar exposure. Environmental pollutant tissue concentrations were relatively high, in particular organochlorinated xenobiotics. Gastric content and morphologic tissue examinations showed a prolonged starvation, which likely caused, at its turn, the mobilization of lipophilic contaminants from the adipose tissue. Chemical compounds subsequently entered the blood circulation and may have impaired immune and nervous functions.Conclusions/Significance: A multi-factorial cause underlying this sperm whales’ mass stranding is proposed herein based upon the results of postmortem investigations as well as of the detailed analyses of the geographical and historical background. The seven sperm whales took the same ‘‘wrong way’’ into the Adriatic Sea, a potentially dangerous trap forMediterranean sperm whales. Seismic surveys should be also regarded as potential ... Article in Journal/Newspaper Physeter macrocephalus Sperm whale IRIS Universita degli Studi di Teramo PLoS ONE 6 5 e19417 |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
IRIS Universita degli Studi di Teramo |
op_collection_id |
ftunivteramo |
language |
English |
topic |
Sperm whale Cetacean mass stranding Multidisciplinary study |
spellingShingle |
Sperm whale Cetacean mass stranding Multidisciplinary study MAZZARIOL S PETRELLA A MARSILI L FOSSI M. C LEONZIO C ZIZZO N VIZZINI S GASPARI S PAVAN G PODESTA' M GARIBALDI F FERRANTELLI M COPAT C MARCER F AIROLDI S FRANTZIS A DE BERALDO QUIROS Y COZZI B FERNANDEZ A. DI GUARDO, Giovanni TRAVERSA, Donato Sometimes Sperm Whales (Physeter macrocephalus) Cannot Find Their Way Back to the High Seas: A Multidisciplinary Study on a Mass Stranding |
topic_facet |
Sperm whale Cetacean mass stranding Multidisciplinary study |
description |
Background: Mass strandings of sperm whales (Physeter macrocephalus) remain peculiar and rather unexplained events, which rarely occur in the Mediterranean Sea. Solar cycles and related changes in the geomagnetic field, variations in watertemperature and weather conditions, coast geographical features and human activities have been proposed as possible causes. In December 2009, a pod of seven male sperm whales stranded along the Adriatic coast of Southern Italy. This is the sixth instance from 1555 in this basin.Methodology/Principal Findings: Complete necropsies were performed on three whales whose bodies were in good condition, carrying out on sampled tissues histopathology, virology, bacteriology, parasitology, and screening of veinslooking for gas emboli. Furthermore, samples for age determination, genetic studies, gastric content evaluation, stable isotopes and toxicology were taken from all the seven specimens. The animals were part of the same group and determined by genetic and photo- identification to be part of the Mediterranean population. Causes of death did not include biological agents, or the ‘‘gas and fat embolic syndrome’’, associated with direct sonar exposure. Environmental pollutant tissue concentrations were relatively high, in particular organochlorinated xenobiotics. Gastric content and morphologic tissue examinations showed a prolonged starvation, which likely caused, at its turn, the mobilization of lipophilic contaminants from the adipose tissue. Chemical compounds subsequently entered the blood circulation and may have impaired immune and nervous functions.Conclusions/Significance: A multi-factorial cause underlying this sperm whales’ mass stranding is proposed herein based upon the results of postmortem investigations as well as of the detailed analyses of the geographical and historical background. The seven sperm whales took the same ‘‘wrong way’’ into the Adriatic Sea, a potentially dangerous trap forMediterranean sperm whales. Seismic surveys should be also regarded as potential ... |
author2 |
Yes Mazzariol, S DI GUARDO, Giovanni Petrella, A Marsili, L Fossi, M. C. Leonzio, C Zizzo, N Vizzini, S Gaspari, S Pavan, G Podesta', M Garibaldi, F Ferrantelli, M Copat, C Traversa, Donato Marcer, F Airoldi, S Frantzis, A DE BERALDO QUIROS, Y Cozzi, B Fernandez, A. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
MAZZARIOL S PETRELLA A MARSILI L FOSSI M. C LEONZIO C ZIZZO N VIZZINI S GASPARI S PAVAN G PODESTA' M GARIBALDI F FERRANTELLI M COPAT C MARCER F AIROLDI S FRANTZIS A DE BERALDO QUIROS Y COZZI B FERNANDEZ A. DI GUARDO, Giovanni TRAVERSA, Donato |
author_facet |
MAZZARIOL S PETRELLA A MARSILI L FOSSI M. C LEONZIO C ZIZZO N VIZZINI S GASPARI S PAVAN G PODESTA' M GARIBALDI F FERRANTELLI M COPAT C MARCER F AIROLDI S FRANTZIS A DE BERALDO QUIROS Y COZZI B FERNANDEZ A. DI GUARDO, Giovanni TRAVERSA, Donato |
author_sort |
MAZZARIOL S |
title |
Sometimes Sperm Whales (Physeter macrocephalus) Cannot Find Their Way Back to the High Seas: A Multidisciplinary Study on a Mass Stranding |
title_short |
Sometimes Sperm Whales (Physeter macrocephalus) Cannot Find Their Way Back to the High Seas: A Multidisciplinary Study on a Mass Stranding |
title_full |
Sometimes Sperm Whales (Physeter macrocephalus) Cannot Find Their Way Back to the High Seas: A Multidisciplinary Study on a Mass Stranding |
title_fullStr |
Sometimes Sperm Whales (Physeter macrocephalus) Cannot Find Their Way Back to the High Seas: A Multidisciplinary Study on a Mass Stranding |
title_full_unstemmed |
Sometimes Sperm Whales (Physeter macrocephalus) Cannot Find Their Way Back to the High Seas: A Multidisciplinary Study on a Mass Stranding |
title_sort |
sometimes sperm whales (physeter macrocephalus) cannot find their way back to the high seas: a multidisciplinary study on a mass stranding |
publishDate |
2011 |
url |
http://hdl.handle.net/11575/13161 https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0019417 |
genre |
Physeter macrocephalus Sperm whale |
genre_facet |
Physeter macrocephalus Sperm whale |
op_relation |
info:eu-repo/semantics/altIdentifier/pmid/PMID: 21673789 info:eu-repo/semantics/altIdentifier/wos/WOS:000290720200005 volume:6(5): e19417 numberofpages:17 journal:PLOS ONE http://hdl.handle.net/11575/13161 doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0019417 info:eu-repo/semantics/altIdentifier/scopus/2-s2.0-79956205540 |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0019417 |
container_title |
PLoS ONE |
container_volume |
6 |
container_issue |
5 |
container_start_page |
e19417 |
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