Initial description of short-finned pilot whale (Globicephala macrorhynchus) genetic diversity from the Caribbean |
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| Affiliation: | 1. Southall Environmental Associates, Inc., 9099 Soquel Drive, Aptos, CA 95003, USA;2. Marine Mammal and Turtle Division, Southwest Fisheries Science Center, National Marine Fisheries Service, 8901 La Jolla Shores Drive, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA;3. Institute of Marine Sciences, University of California Santa Cruz, 115 McAllister Way, Santa Cruz, CA 95060, USA;4. Cascadia Research Collective, 218 1/2 W 4th Ave., Olympia, WA 98501, USA;5. SR3 SeaLife Response, Rehabilitation and Research, 2003 S. 216th St. #98811, Des Moines, WA 98198, USA;6. Environmental Assessment Services, 350 Hills St., Suite 112, Richland, WA 99354, USA;7. Department of Biology, Hopkins Marine Station, Stanford University, Pacific Grove, CA 93950, USA;8. Kelp Marine Research, 1624 CJ Hoorn, the Netherlands;9. Department of Freshwater and Marine Ecology, Institute for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Dynamics, University of Amsterdam, P.O. Box 94240, 1090 GE Amsterdam, the Netherlands;10. Department of Coastal Systems, Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research, P.O. Box 59, 1790 AB Den Burg, Texel, the Netherlands |
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| Abstract: | Short-finned pilot whales (Globicephala macrorhynchus) are known for their highly social cohesive behavior which contributes to the reporting by the public of mass stranding. This species has been hunted in the Lesser Antilles in the Caribbean for generations. Currently, the genetic diversity of short-finned pilot whales has been investigated in the North Atlantic, South Pacific and Japan/Korea, but not in the Caribbean. Here we provide the first description of the genetic diversity of this species in the Caribbean using mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) control region (CR) sequences and seven microsatellite loci from 25 skin samples collected from four stranding events in Jamaica, Puerto Rico, British Virgin Islands, and Trinidad and Tobago. Overall, three CR haplotypes were identified; of these, one was unique for the Caribbean (Car 1), while a second (haplotype D) was previously reported in the Western North Atlantic, and a third (Haplotype A) was found to be common in the South Pacific. Even though sample size (n = 25) was small, microsatellite analysis showed a low level of relatedness between the stranded whales. Our results provide relevant preliminary information on the genetic diversity of short-finned pilot whales in the Caribbean, reporting one previously unknown and unique haplotype for this region. Further research should be carried out in the Caribbean to further our knowledge on this species, particularly since its prone to mass stranding. |
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| Keywords: | Short-finned pilot whale mtDNA Kinship Strandings Caribbean |
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