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Beaked whale strandings on the Falkland Islands and South Georgia, South Atlantic Ocean, between 1866 and 2008

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  22 July 2011

Helen Otley ,
John Smith  and
Merel L. Dalebout
Helen Otley*
Affiliation:
Environmental Planning Department, Falkland Islands Government, Stanley, Falkland Islands, FIQ 1ZZ, UK
John Smith
Affiliation:
Ross Rd West, Stanley, Falkland Islands, FIQ 1ZZ, UK
Merel L. Dalebout
Affiliation:
School of Biological, Earth, and Environmental Sciences, University of New South Wales (UNSW), Kensington 2052, NSW, Australia
*
Correspondence should be addressed to: H. Otley, West Coast Tai Poutini Conservancy Department of Conservation, Hokitika 7810, New Zealand email: heleno@southcom.com.au
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Abstract

Records of beaked whales stranded in the Falkland Islands and at South Georgia were collated for the period 1866 to 2008. Thirty-eight records, involving at least seven species in four genera, were documented. Strap-toothed whales (Mesoplodon layardii Gray, 1865) were the most common species with 11 records, including two neonates. Andrews' beaked whales (M. bowdoini Andrews, 1908), Arnoux's beaked whales (Berardius arnuxii Duvernoy, 1851), Cuvier's beaked whales (Ziphius cavirostris Gray, 1823), Gray's beaked whale (M. grayi van Haast, 1876), Hector's beaked whales (M. hectori Gray, 1871) and southern bottlenose whales (Hyperoodon planifrons Flower, 1882) were recorded on three to five occasions. In several cases, records suggested potential temporal changes in range. For example, Arnoux's beaked whale has not been recorded in the Falkland Islands since 1965, whilst Gray's beaked whale was not recorded prior to 1981, and Andrews' beaked whale was not recorded before 1987. Although the number of records for each species is low, this could reflect changes in water temperatures and/or prey availability. Overall, this study confirms that the Falkland Islands–Tierra del Fuego region is one of the world's key areas for beaked whales.

Keywords

beaked whaleMesoplodonZiphiidaeFalkland IslandsSouth GeorgiaSouth Atlantic Oceanstrandings
Type
Research Article
Information
Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom , Volume 92 , Issue 8: Marine Mammals , December 2012 , pp. 1851 - 1864
Copyright
Copyright © Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom 2011

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