Marine Strandings Flashcards
Describe Strandings as opportunity for research?
- Opportunistic sampling method
- Use of necropsy as a powerful sampling tool
- What can the UK strandings programme revealabout cetacean threats and marine health?
What are strandings defined as?
“when a live or dead marine mammal swims or floats onto shore and becomes ‘beached’ or incapable fo returning to sea”
-> may occur individual or in groups ; natural & anthropogenic causes
What are UMEs?
Unsusual Mortality Events -> “a stranding that is unexpected; involves a
significant die-off of any marine mammal
population; and demands immediate
response.”
What were top 5 causes of death in stranded cetaceans UK?
- Infectious dx
- Bycatch/ entaglement
- Live stranding
- Starvation
- Interspecific aggression
what is a by-catch?
incidental entrapment of non target species
describe entanglement as cause of death?
- a cause of death
category largely confined to
minke and other baleen whales.
Denotes evidence of
entanglement in rope (creel etc.)
or discarded fishing gear/marine
litter
How to tell Acute bycatch death?
- Healthy, unremarkable
- goo nutritional condition
- Classic linear lesion
- Brusiing associated
- No skin/ tissue remodelling
- Anrexia or water aspiration
Chronic bycatch death?
- Tissue/ skin remodeling (chronically entangled)
- Necrotic tissue around lesion
- Debilitation
- Emaciation
- Source fo infection -> septicaemia
- WELFARE issue
Bycatch summary/ global context?
- Bycatch is the primary direct anthropogenic driver of
mortality in the UK (from necropsy of UK stranded
cetaceans) - Consistent finding in every year (90-19)
- INC welfare issue
- INC conservation issue (in some species)
- Welfare v Conservation? Large CI with
survey/population estimates. - Small and “enclosed” populations more at risk of
bycatch related impacts
Describe inter/intraspecific aggression ?
- Fatal attack from one or more bottlenose dolphins
- Grey seal attack
What does bottlenose dolphin attack look like?
Cavitating haemorrhagic lesions (not visible on skin) - from multiple points of impact (broken ribs etc)
FOCAL IMPACTS
What are the three forms of marine pollution?
CHEMIAL
ACOUSTIC
PHYSICAL
what is marine debris defined as?
“any persistent solid material that is manufactured or processed and directly or indirectly, intentionally or
unintentionally, disposed of or abandoned into the marine
environment”
-> area of potential oncern in cetaceans
Describe PCBs (Polychlorinated
biphenyls) as marine contaminants?
- Legacy POPs
- Bioaccumulate
- Immunosuppressive
- Reproductive impairement
Describe CISP’s Impact
- Policy: Local (e.g. EIA’s renewables);
National (e.g. implementation of UK
Habitats and Species Regulations,
Marine Strategy/GES indicators, PQs,
Parliamentary inquiries etc);
International (e.g. IWC, ASCOBANS,
OSPAR, EU ban on penta-mix BDE’s) - Science: tissue archive with >150 000
samples, 270+ peer-reviewed scientific
publications from data/samples - Education and outreach: wide range of
teaching across the country; innovative
outreach events; significant media
impact
What CISP summary?
