Published in Developments in Marine Biology
Dolphins and porpoises spend the majority of their lives underwater, out of the view of human observers. Consequently, scientists have relied on indirect means to study the foraging ecology of these animals. These indirect methods, such as examining the stomach contents of carcasses, provide an incomplete and often biased view of their feeding ecol...
Published in Developments in Marine Biology
Background: during recent years the concept of biomarkers has been introduced to assess biological effects of pollutant exposure. Biomarkers can play a valuable role in assessing whether or not damage is occurring (Peakall D. The role of biomarkers in environmental assessment (1) Introduction. Ecotoxicology 1994;3:157–160). The aim of the present s...
Published in Developments in Marine Biology
Hooded seals, Cystophora cristata, are abundant in the North Atlantic. This paper reviews current knowledge on the distribution and dive behaviour of these seals. The stock which breeds in sea ice near Jan Mayen may count about 250,000 animals, but little is known about where they stay and what they eat outside the pupping season (March/April) and ...
Published in Developments in Marine Biology
The fatty acid composition of phocid seals was investigated in order to map the possible stratification of fatty acids in the depot fat and to detect possible differences between different tissues and between the four species grey seal (Halichoerus grypus), harbour seal (Phoca vitulina), ringed seal (Phoca hispida) and harp seal (Phoca groenlandica...
Published in Developments in Marine Biology
Concentrations of Hg, Cd, Pb, Ag, Zn, Cu and Mn in liver, kidney, muscle, lung, heart and diaphragm of harbour porpoise (Phocoena phocoena) from the Polish Baltic Sea were determined. Distinct inter-tissue differentiation in metal concentrations was noted; liver showed maximum concentrations of Ag, Cu and Mn; kidney had the greatest concentrations ...
Published in Developments in Marine Biology
Ringed seal fetuses grow according to the equation: (fetal mass)1/3 (g)=0.075 (days)−1.23 (r=0.997), for the 241 days of active gestation. The energy content of newborn ringed seals (N=3, mass=4.55 kg, fat=4.75%, protein=21.8%) and placentas (N=3, mass=0.347 kg, fat=1.88%, protein=16.38%) are 26.3 MJ and 1.3 MJ, respectively. Metabolic requirements...
Published in Developments in Marine Biology
A brief analysis is made of the strategies that can be used to reduce the bycatches of marine mammals and other species in fisheries. They all fall under two basic types: reduction of the level of effort and reduction of the average bycatch per unit of effort (BPUE). The former frequently results in lower catches of the target species. Reduction in...
Published in Developments in Marine Biology
The development in Norway of modern whaling techniques in the 1860s allowed all species of whales to be hunted successfully close to shore, and then in the open oceans throughout the world after the introduction of pelagic factory ships in the 1920s. Depletion of the stocks led to regulation, now carried out by the International Whaling Commission ...
Published in Developments in Marine Biology
This paper explores the socio-cultural aspects of hunting marine mammals in Norway in a historic perspective. It argues that although modern minke whaling is of relatively recent origin, cetaceans have long been taken when an opportunity occurred. The successful introduction of modern minke whaling around 1930 testifies to the great imagination of ...
Published in Developments in Marine Biology
