AERIAL BEHAVIOR IN FIN WHALES (<i>BALAENOPTERA PHYSALUS</i>) IN THE MEDITERRANEAN SEA

Marini, Luca; Consiglio, Chiara; Catalano, Barbara; Valentini, Tiziana; Villetti, Germana

doi:10.1111/j.1748-7692.1996.tb00604.x

Cited by 13 publications

(35 citation statements)

References 4 publications

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“…Sightings show an important individual rate from late winter to early spring with an indisputable connection to shallow waters of depths shallower than 250 m close to the coast. Similar behaviour was reported previously with 5-20 whales (Marini et al, 1995;Canese et al, 2006). Canese et al, 2006).…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 91%

“…Few studies envisaged a possible migration through the Strait of Gibraltar, the only passage possible to the Atlantic Ocean (Viale, 1977;Guinet et al, 2007). Moreover, winter aggregations have been reported in the southern central Mediterranean (Marini et al, 1995) more specifically around the island of Lampedusa. The mitochondrial and nuclear loci differences point to a genetic isolation between the Atlantic and Mediterranean populations of fin whales (Bérubé et al, 1998).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 98%

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Large-scale seasonal distribution of fin whales (Balaenoptera physalus) in the central Mediterranean Sea

Aissi

Celona²,

Comparetto³

et al. 2008

J. Mar. Biol. Ass.

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Fin whales (Balaenoptera physalus) are the only mysticete regularly found in the Mediterranean Sea. Its exceptional high abundance during the summer period in the north-western Mediterranean is essentially due to productive waters, but outside of this spatio-temporal window its distribution still remains quite unknown. This paper investigates the distribution of the fin whale on large-scales during the 2002-2006 period. Three areas of the central Mediterranean Sea were selected: the Ligurian Sea in the north-western Mediterranean belonging to the Pelagos Sanctuary; the area connecting both Mediterranean basins in the south-western Mediterranean, the Strait of Messina; and the waters surrounding the island of Lampedusa, in the central Mediterranean. Of the 41,270 km covered by the three surveys, a total of 98 sightings was recorded corresponding to 198 fin whales. Results display a year round distribution along synchronic seasonal dispatching, with a feeding behaviour occurrence in the northern part of the Pelagos Sanctuary during late spring and summer. They indicate high abundance in the Lampedusa area from late winter to early spring manifesting feeding activity. In the Strait of Messina, our results point out the importance of this area as a seasonal feeding ground and an important location for regular autumn transfers between both Mediterranean basins. According to the feeding ground in the two Mediterranean basins, whales change foraging strategy, one being single animals or animal pairs searching for prey in the water column while the other strategy is associated with more individuals feeding on the surface. The strategies differ also by their ecological conditions, such as depth affinity and shoreline distance.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 91%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 98%

Large-scale seasonal distribution of fin whales (Balaenoptera physalus) in the central Mediterranean Sea

Aissi

Celona²,

Comparetto³

et al. 2008

J. Mar. Biol. Ass.

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“…The first would be that fin whales observed in the Mediterranean Sea represent a summer feeding population that breeds elsewhere during the winter as part of an eastern North Atlantic fin whale population, as is observed in North Atlantic humpback whales (Palsbøll et al 1995). However, the paucity of fin whale sightings and strandings in the Strait of Gibraltar and neighboring waters (Beaubrun 1995;Beaubrun and Roussel 2000;Fernández-Casado et al 2000), together with the existence of a fin whale wintering ground between Italy and the Mediterranean coasts of northern Africa (Marini et al 1995), seems inconsistent with the notion that Mediterranean Sea fin whales, which are estimated to number about 3500 individuals (Forcada et al 1996), migrate to and from the North Atlantic during the autumn and spring, respectively. Another possibility is occasional gene flow with a bias toward male-mediated gene flow between the current populations off Atlantic Spain and in the Mediterranean Sea.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Discerning Between Recurrent Gene Flow and Recent Divergence Under a Finite-Site Mutation Model Applied to North Atlantic and Mediterranean Sea Fin Whale (Balaenoptera Physalus) Populations

et al. 2004

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Abstract. Genetic divergence among conspecific subpopulations can be due to either low recurrent gene flow or recent divergence and no gene flow. Here we present a modification of an earlier method developed by Nielsen and Wakeley (2001), which accommodates a finite-site mutation model, to assess which of the two models of divergence is most likely given the observed data. We apply the method to nucleotide sequence data collected from the variable part of the mitochondrial control region in fin whales (Balaenoptera physalus) from the Atlantic coast off Spain and the Mediterranean Sea. Our estimations strongly favor a model of recurrent gene flow over a model of recent divergence and zero gene flow. We estimated the migration rate at two females per generation. While the estimated rate is high by evolutionary standards, exchange rates of this order of magnitude is low from an ecological and conservation perspective and entirely consistent with the current paucity of fin whale sightings in the Strait of Gibraltar today. Intensive commercial shore-based whaling during the 1920s removed substantial numbers of fin whales in the Strait of Gibraltar and this local population has seemingly since failed to recover. The degree of reproductive isolation among conspecifics is a basic parameter in evolutionary biology and most commonly estimated by genetic analysis. However, different evolutionary models may yield a similar degree of genetic divergence among subpopulations. For instance, low levels of genetic differentiation are commonly observed among conspecific subpopulations and could be due to either low levels of ongoing gene flow or recent divergence with zero gene flow. Methods to discriminate between these two different models have been developed by Nielsen and Wakeley (2001) based on an infinite-site mutation model. However, estimation of genetic divergence among conspecific populations is usually based on loci that evolve at relatively high rates, such as the mitochondrial control region, and where the infinitesite mutation model is inappropriate. In this study, we present a modification of the approach presented by Nielsen and Wakeley (2001), which assumes a finite-site rather than an infinite-site mutation model. We apply the approach to fin whale (Balaenoptera physalus) samples collected off the Atlantic coast of Spain and in the Mediterranean Sea.A recent study by Bérubé et al. (1998) aimed at North Atlantic and Mediterranean fin whales found a significant degree of genetic divergence (F ST estimated at 0.097) at the mitochondrial control region loci between fin whales sampled off the Atlantic coast of Spain and in the Mediterranean Sea. In contrast, significant levels of genetic divergence at six nuclear microsatellite loci were only detected among the populations furthest away from the Mediterranean Sea, such as the Gulf of Maine and western Greenland. These results suggested that an isolation-by-distance model most appropriately describes the gene flow among North Atlantic and Mediterranean Sea fin whales....

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“…Marini et al 1996a). Marini et al (1992Marini et al ( , 1996a proposed the first hypothesis to explain the fin whale seasonal cycle within the Mediterranean: the whales leave their primary Ligurian Sea feeding areas in winter when climatic conditions become less favourable, and use the Tyrrhenian Sea as a transit area to reach southern Mediterranean waters for breeding. In spring, the whales return to summer feeding areas, but also to areas in the eastern basin.…”

Section: Movement Patterns Of the Resident Mediterranean Fin Whales: mentioning

confidence: 99%

Mysticete migration revisited: are Mediterranean fin whales an anomaly?

2016

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1.The generally accepted model of Mysticete whale migration is that most individuals undertake seasonal migrations between high and low latitudes. Although numerous exceptions have been described in the literature, the traditional model remains unexamined. This paper represents the first 'official' challenge to the traditional model of Mysticete migration. 2. We set out to review the current state of knowledge on the Mediterranean fin whale migratory pattern, and to examine whether the small, resident population in the Mediterranean is an anomaly within the framework of the traditional model of Mysticete migration. We investigated the prevalence of alternative migratory strategies among the Mysticete whales, reviewing the migratory habits of the Mediterranean fin whales and those of other fin whale and baleen whale populations. 3. We reach three main conclusions. First, the seasonal behaviour of the resident Mediterranean fin whales is highly dynamic, and a decade of research has not clarified prevailing uncertainties regarding migration patterns. Second, migration strategies similar to those observed in the Mediterranean fin whales are commonly seen in other populations of baleen whales. Third, the traditional model of whale migration is too simplified to describe the repertoire of Mysticete migratory behaviours accurately. 4. We argue that the paradigm of baleen whale migration warrants further scrutiny to account for more complex movement strategies. We suggest that Mysticete migration should be thought of as a continuum of different strategies that have evolved in the face of different selective pressures. Instead of representing an exception to the rule, the resident Mediterranean fin whales may in fact fall towards one end of a larger spectrum of migratory behaviours. A greater knowledge of ecological factors, reproductive patterns, and local adaptations will be needed to understand the evolutionary mechanisms behind the diversity of migratory habits. bs_bs_banner

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AERIAL BEHAVIOR IN FIN WHALES (BALAENOPTERA PHYSALUS) IN THE MEDITERRANEAN SEA

Cited by 13 publications

References 4 publications

Large-scale seasonal distribution of fin whales (Balaenoptera physalus) in the central Mediterranean Sea

Large-scale seasonal distribution of fin whales (Balaenoptera physalus) in the central Mediterranean Sea

Discerning Between Recurrent Gene Flow and Recent Divergence Under a Finite-Site Mutation Model Applied to North Atlantic and Mediterranean Sea Fin Whale (Balaenoptera Physalus) Populations

Mysticete migration revisited: are Mediterranean fin whales an anomaly?

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