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Ceccolini ME, Wessels M, Macgregor SK, Deaville R, Perkins M, Jepson PD, John SK, Guthrie A. Systemic Erysipelothrix rhusiopathiae in seven free-ranging delphinids stranded in England and Wales. Dis Aquat Organ 2021; 145:173-184. [PMID: 34263732 DOI: 10.3354/dao03609] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
Microbiology records for 1127 cetaceans stranded on English and Welsh beaches and examined at the Institute of Zoology between 1990 and 2019 were reviewed to identify cases of Erysipelothrix rhusiopathiae, an uncommon but potentially fatal zoonotic pathogen. Once cases were identified, prevalence was calculated, corresponding postmortem reports were reviewed, common gross and histopathological findings were identified, and antibiotic susceptibilities were determined. Overall prevalence for E. rhusiopathiae was 0.62% (7/1127; 95% CI: 0.30-1.28%). It was isolated from 3 bottlenose dolphins Tursiops truncatus, 3 harbor porpoises Phocoena phocoena, and 1 short-beaked common dolphin Delphinus delphis, with a prevalence of 21.4% (3/14; 95% CI: 7.6-47.9%), 0.39% (3/779; 95% CI: 0.13-1.13%), and 0.47% (1/212; 95% CI: 0.08-2.62%) for each species, respectively. E. rhusiopathiae resulted in septicemia in all cases from which it was isolated. Gross necropsy findings included pulmonary edema (5/7), hemorrhage (5/7) and/or congestion of various organs (4/7), and serosanguineous effusion (3/7; pericardial: 3/7, pleural: 2/6, abdominal: 2/6). Congestion (5/5), bacterial emboli (4/5), and hemorrhage (4/5) were commonly observed on histopathology, and acute renal tubular injury (2/5) and pulmonary edema (2/5) were occasionally observed. Routine bacterial cultures were vital in identifying E. rhusiopathiae, since gross lesions were often subtle and nonspecific. The liver, kidney, and brain were key organs from which E. rhusiopathiae was consistently isolated. Antibiotic resistance was uncommon and was only observed for amikacin and trimethoprim sulfonamide. Penicillins were consistently effective, along with fluoroquinolones, macrolides, clindamycin, cephalexin, and oxytetracycline.
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Chen MH, Lin YT, Lai CC, Chou LS, Chen CY. Tissue concentrations of Fe, Zn, Cu and Mn of four Taiwanese toothed cetaceans. Mar Pollut Bull 2020; 158:111094. [PMID: 32753165 DOI: 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2020.111094] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/29/2019] [Revised: 03/18/2020] [Accepted: 03/18/2020] [Indexed: 06/11/2023]
Abstract
Concentrations of Fe, Mn, Zn, and Cu in the muscle, lung, liver, and kidney tissues of 49 cetaceans, including 11 Kogia sima (Ks), 10 Lagenodelphis hosei (Lh), 14 Grampus griseus (Gg), and 14 Stenella attenuata (Sa) from 1994 to 2012 in Taiwan were measured. Ks exhibited the highest Fe, and the lowest Zn, Cu and Mn tissue concentrations. The Kogiid and Delphinid groups were significantly categorized by nMDS analysis. Fe muscle concentrations were found to be positively correlated with Ks, Lh, and Gg but not Sa body length. The different levels of Zn-, Cu-, and Mn- tissue concentrations of the two families were due to their different SOD systems. Their calves contained higher Cu liver concentrations. The four essential elements in cetaceans regulate homeostasis to meet their eco-physiological demand. The baseline levels for these four elements in these four tissues in the Delphinid group are defined.
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Affiliation(s)
- Meng-Hsien Chen
- Department of Oceanography (Marine Biology group), National Sun Yat-sen University, 804 Kaohsiung, Taiwan; Department of Biomedical Science and Environmental Biology, Kaohsiung Medical University, 807 Kaohsiung, Taiwan.
| | - Yu-Ting Lin
- Department of Oceanography (Marine Biology group), National Sun Yat-sen University, 804 Kaohsiung, Taiwan
| | - Chien-Cheng Lai
- Department of Oceanography (Marine Biology group), National Sun Yat-sen University, 804 Kaohsiung, Taiwan
| | - Lien-Siang Chou
- Institute of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, National Taiwan University, 106 Taipei, Taiwan
| | - Chiee-Young Chen
- Department of Marine Environmental Engineering, National Kaohsiung University, 811 Kaohsiung, Taiwan
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Pedro S, Dietz R, Sonne C, Rosing-Asvid A, Hansen M, McKinney MA. Are vitamins A and E associated with persistent organic pollutants and fatty acids in the blubber of highly contaminated killer whales (Orcinus orca) from Greenland? Environ Res 2019; 177:108602. [PMID: 31398560 DOI: 10.1016/j.envres.2019.108602] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/18/2019] [Revised: 06/20/2019] [Accepted: 07/21/2019] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
We quantified blubber concentrations of vitamins A (retinol) and E (α-tocopherol) and evaluated associations with persistent organic pollutants (ΣPOPs) in 14 highly-contaminated killer whales (Orcinus orca) sampled in Greenland from 2012 to 2014. We considered the influence of blubber depth, sex/age class and diet (based on biomass % of major fatty acids) in these relationships. Blubber concentrations of vitamin A averaged 34.1 ± 4.7 μg g-1 wet weight (ww) and vitamin E averaged 35.6 ± 4.4 μg g-1 ww. Although overall vitamin A concentrations did not vary between inner (closer to the muscle) and outer (closer to the skin) blubber layer or between sub-adults and adult females, concentrations in the outer layer of sub-adults were lower compared to the outer layer of adult females (p = 0.03). Outer layer may therefore reflect age accumulation of vitamin A, while in the more active inner layer, age effects might be masked by metabolic needs such as lactation. Neither diet nor ΣPOPs affected vitamin A variation, suggesting this vitamin is highly regulated in the body. Given the high exposures in these killer whales, vitamin A might not be a sensitive biomarker for POPs adverse effects. Vitamin E concentrations were significantly higher in inner compared to outer layer (p < 0.001), likely associated with blubber composition, suggesting that biopsies may not fully represent vitamin E concentrations in blubber. Age-accumulation of vitamin E also occurred with higher concentrations in adult females compared to sub-adults, independent of blubber depth (p < 0.01). Diet, ΣPOPs, and an interaction between these two variables significantly affected vitamin E variation in inner blubber, explaining 91% of this variation. The negative relationship between ΣPOPs (especially Σdichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT) and Σchlordanes in outer layers) and vitamin E was observed only in killer whales with a diet poorer in polyunsaturated fatty acids, suggested that killer whales feeding more consistently on marine mammals in Arctic environments over a fish-based diet, may be at higher risk of POP-induced disruption in vitamin E homeostasis. Considering diet is therefore important to understand the potential effects of elevated contaminant exposures on levels of certain essential nutrients, i.e., vitamin E, in killer whales.
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Affiliation(s)
- S Pedro
- Wildlife and Fisheries Conservation Center, Department of Natural Resources and the Environment and Center for Environmental Sciences and Engineering, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, 06269, USA; Department of Social and Preventive Medicine, Laval University, Quebec City, QC, G1V 0A6, Canada.
| | - R Dietz
- Department of Biosciences, Arctic Research Centre, Aarhus University, Roskilde, DK-4000, Denmark
| | - C Sonne
- Department of Biosciences, Arctic Research Centre, Aarhus University, Roskilde, DK-4000, Denmark
| | - A Rosing-Asvid
- Greenland Institute of Natural Resources, Nuuk, DK-3900, Greenland
| | - M Hansen
- Department of Environmental Science, Aarhus University, Roskilde, DK-4000, Denmark
| | - M A McKinney
- Wildlife and Fisheries Conservation Center, Department of Natural Resources and the Environment and Center for Environmental Sciences and Engineering, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, 06269, USA; Department of Natural Resource Sciences, McGill University, Ste-Anne-de-Bellevue, QC, H9X 3V9, Canada.
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Fearey J, Elwen SH, James BS, Gridley T. Identification of potential signature whistles from free-ranging common dolphins (Delphinus delphis) in South Africa. Anim Cogn 2019; 22:777-789. [PMID: 31177344 DOI: 10.1007/s10071-019-01274-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/18/2019] [Revised: 05/07/2019] [Accepted: 06/01/2019] [Indexed: 12/21/2022]
Abstract
Conveying identity is important for social animals to maintain individually based relationships. Communication of identity information relies on both signal encoding and perception. Several delphinid species use individually distinctive signature whistles to transmit identity information, best described for the common bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops truncatus). In this study, we investigate signature whistle use in wild common dolphins (Delphinus delphis). Acoustic recordings were analysed from 11 encounters from three locations in South Africa (Hout Bay, False Bay, and Plettenberg Bay) during 2009, 2016 and 2017. The frequency contours of whistles were visually categorised, with 29 signature whistle types (SWTs) identified through contour categorisation and a bout analysis approach developed specifically to identify signature whistles in bottlenose dolphins (SIGID). Categorisation verification was conducted using an unsupervised neural network (ARTwarp) at both a 91% and 96% vigilance parameter. For this, individual SWTs were analysed type by type and then in a 'global' analysis whereby all 497 whistle contours were categorised simultaneously. Overall the analysis demonstrated high stereotypy in the structure and temporal production of whistles, consistent with signature whistle use. We suggest that individual identity information may be encoded in these whistle contours. However, the large group sizes and high degree of vocal activity characteristic of this dolphin species generate a cluttered acoustic environment with high potential for masking from conspecific vocalisations. Therefore, further investigation into the mechanisms of identity perception in such acoustically cluttered environments is required to demonstrate the function of these stereotyped whistle types in common dolphins.
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Affiliation(s)
- J Fearey
- Sea Search Research and Conservation NPC, 4 Bath Rd, Muizenberg, Cape Town, 7945, South Africa
- Department of Statistical Sciences, Centre for Statistics in Ecology, Environment and Conservation, University of Cape Town, Rondebosch, Cape Town, 7700, South Africa
| | - S H Elwen
- Sea Search Research and Conservation NPC, 4 Bath Rd, Muizenberg, Cape Town, 7945, South Africa
- Department of Zoology and Entomology, Mammal Research Institute, University of Pretoria, Hatfield, Pretoria , 0002, South Africa
| | - B S James
- Sea Search Research and Conservation NPC, 4 Bath Rd, Muizenberg, Cape Town, 7945, South Africa
| | - T Gridley
- Sea Search Research and Conservation NPC, 4 Bath Rd, Muizenberg, Cape Town, 7945, South Africa.
- Department of Statistical Sciences, Centre for Statistics in Ecology, Environment and Conservation, University of Cape Town, Rondebosch, Cape Town, 7700, South Africa.
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Wisniewska DM, Johnson M, Nachtigall PE, Madsen PT. Buzzing during biosonar-based interception of prey in the delphinids Tursiops truncatus and Pseudorca crassidens. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2014; 217:4279-82. [PMID: 25394631 DOI: 10.1242/jeb.113415] [Citation(s) in RCA: 36] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Abstract
Echolocating bats and toothed whales probe their environment with ultrasonic sound pulses, using returning echoes to navigate and find prey in a process that appears to have resulted from a remarkable convergence of the two taxa. Here, we report the first detailed quantification of echolocation behaviour during prey capture in the most studied delphinid species, a false killer whale and a bottlenose dolphin. Using acoustic DTAGs, we demonstrate that just prior to prey interception these delphinids change their acoustic gaze dramatically by reducing inter-click intervals and output >10-fold in a high repetition rate, low output buzz. Buzz click rates of 250-500 Hz for large but agile animals suggest that sampling rates during capture are scaled with the whale's manoeuvrability. These observations support the growing notion that fast sonar sampling accompanied by a low output level is critical for high rate feedback to inform motor patterns during prey interception in all echolocating toothed whales.
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Affiliation(s)
- Danuta M Wisniewska
- Marine Mammal Research, Bioscience, Aarhus University, Roskilde DK-4000, Denmark. Zoophysiology, Bioscience, Aarhus University, Aarhus DK-8000, Denmark.
| | - Mark Johnson
- Scottish Oceans Institute, University of St Andrews, St Andrews KY16 8LB, UK
| | | | - Peter T Madsen
- Zoophysiology, Bioscience, Aarhus University, Aarhus DK-8000, Denmark
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