Single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) are rapidly becoming the population genomic markers in addressing ecology, evolution, and conservation issues for their high capacity to access variability across the genome. We isolated…
Using samples from bycaught finless porpoises, cytochrome b sequences were analysed and phylogenetic trees were constructed. The aims were to: (1) determine genetic divergences within the genus Neophocaena; (2) examine…
Evolution of endocranial anatomy in cetaceans is important from the perspective of echolocation ability, intelligence, social structure, and alternate pathways for circulation to the brain. Apart from the importance of…
High-resolution X-ray computed tomographic scans were used to examine pterygoid sinus morphology within extant porpoise species and one delphinid (Tursiops truncatus), in order to consider: 1) intraspecific and interspecific variation…
Due to extensive morphological variation and inadequately-sampled or poorly-designed studies, the taxonomy of the finless porpoises (genus Neophocaena) has been controversial for some time. An uneasy stability with the arrangement…
The existence of three distinct populations is widely accepted for the finless porpoise (Neophocaena phocaenoides) in Chinese waters: the Yellow Sea, Yangtze River, and South China Sea populations. Here, we…
Application of molecular tools for the identification of threatened marine mammals has gained importance in recent years. Though live and dead strandings of cetaceans are common along the Indian coasts,…
All extant members of Phocoenidae (porpoises) have been characterized as pedomorphic based on skeletal characters. To investigate the ontogenetic background for pedomorphosis and assess interspecific differences in ontogeny among phocoenids,…
The existence of at least two biological species of finless porpoises (Neophocaena phocaenoides and N. asiaeorientalis) was accepted only recently. Given the vulnerability of finless porpoises to human activities throughout…
Iran has 1,700km of coastline that borders the Persian Gulf and the Arabian Sea in the northwest Indian Ocean. Apart from a handful of records, almost nothing is known about…