Diving on damage – The muscle transcriptome of parasitic infested harbor porpoises (Phocoena phocoena) hints at oxidative stress but not hypoxia

Dönmez, Eda Merve; Siebert, Ursula; Fabrizius, Andrej
Frontiers in Marine Science (2023)

The only native cetacean in German waters, the harbor porpoise (Phocoena phocoena), is impacted by numerous pathological lesions in the respiratory tract mainly caused by parasites or bacteria. Although harbor…


Genome-wide analysis of the harbour porpoise (Phocoena phocoena) indicates isolation-by-distance across the North Atlantic and potential local adaptation in adjacent waters

Autenrieth, Marijke; Havenstein, Katja; De Cahsan, Binia; Canitz, Julia; Benke, Harald; Roos, Anna; Pampoulie, Christophe; Sigurðsson, Guðjón Már; Siebert, Ursula; Olsen, Morten Tange; Biard, Vincent; Heide-Jørgensen, Mads Peter; Öztürk, Ayaka Amaha; Öztürk, Bayram; Lawson, John W.; Tiedemann, Ralph
Conservation Genetics (2023)

The harbour porpoise (Phocoena phocoena), a highly mobile cetacean species of the Northern Hemisphere, inhabits basins that vary broadly in salinity, temperature, and food availability; such variation can drive divergent…


Evolutionary history and seascape genomics of harbour porpoises (Phocoena phocoena) across environmental gradients in the North Atlantic and adjacent waters

Celemín, Enrique; Autenrieth, Marijke; Roos, Anna; Pawliczka, Iwona; Quintela, María; Lindstrøm, Ulf; Benke, Harald; Siebert, Ursula; Lockyer, Christina; Berggren, Per; Özturk, A. Amaha; Özturk, Bayram; Lesage, Véronique; Tiedemann, Ralph
Molecular Ecology Resources (2023)

The Harbour porpoise (Phocoena phocoena) is a highly mobile cetacean species primarily occurring in coastal and shelf waters across the Northern hemisphere. It inhabits heterogeneous seascapes broadly varying in salinity…


Harbor porpoise losing its edge: Genetic time series suggests a rapid population decline in Iberian waters over the last 30 years

Ben Chehida, Yacine; Stelwagen, Tjibbe; Hoekendijk, Jeroen P. A.; Ferreira, Marisa; Eira, Catarina; Torres‐Pereira, Andreia; Nicolau, Lidia; Thumloup, Julie; Fontaine, Michael C.
Ecology and Evolution (2023)

Impact of climate change is expected to be especially noticeable at the edges of a species' distribution, where they meet suboptimal habitat conditions. In Mauritania and Iberia, two genetically differentiated…


Harassment and killing of porpoises (“phocoenacide”) by fish‐eating Southern Resident killer whales (Orcinus orca)

Giles, Deborah A.; Teman, Sarah J.; Ellis, Samuel; Ford, John K. B.; Shields, Monika W.; Hanson, M. Bradley; Emmons, Candice K.; Cottrell, Paul E.; Baird, Robin W.; Osborne, Richard W.; Weiss, Michael; Ellifrit, David K.; Olson, Jennifer K.; Towers, Jared R.; Ellis, Graeme; Matkin, Dena; Smith, Courtney E.; Raverty, Stephen A.; Norman, Stephanie A.; Gaydos, Joseph K.
Marine Mammal Science (2023)

Endangered Southern Resident killer whales (Orcinus orca) are fish-eaters that preferentially prey on adult Chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha). Despite being salmon specialists, individuals from all three killer whale pods (J,…


Millions of seafloor pits, not pockmarks, induced by vertebrates in the North Sea

Schneider von Deimling, Jens; Hoffmann, Jasper; Geersen, Jacob; Koschinski, Sven; Lohrberg, Arne; Gilles, Anita; Belkin, Igor; Böttner, Christoph; Papenmeier, Svenja; Krastel, Sebastian
Communications Earth & Environment (2023)

Seabed pockmarks are among the most prominent morphologic structures in the oceans. They are usually interpreted as surface manifestation of hydrocarbon fluids venting from sediments. Here we suggest an alternative…


Implications of porpoise echolocation and dive behaviour on passive acoustic monitoring

Macaulay, Jamie Donald John; Rojano-Doñate, Laia; Ladegaard, Michael; Tougaard, Jakob; Teilmann, Jonas; Marques, Tiago A.; Siebert, Ursula; Madsen, Peter Teglberg
The Journal of the Acoustical Society of America (2023)

Harbour porpoises are visually inconspicuous but highly soniferous echolocating marine predators that are regularly studied using passive acoustic monitoring (PAM). PAM can provide quality data on animal abundance, human impact,…


Wild harbour porpoises startle and flee at low received levels from acoustic harassment device

Elmegaard, Siri L.; Teilmann, Jonas; Rojano-Doñate, Laia; Brennecke, Dennis; Mikkelsen, Lonnie; Balle, Jeppe D.; Gosewinkel, Ulrich; Kyhn, Line A.; Tønnesen, Pernille; Wahlberg, Magnus; Ruser, Andreas; Siebert, Ursula; Madsen, Peter Teglberg
Scientific Reports (2023)

Acoustic Harassment Devices (AHD) are widely used to deter marine mammals from aquaculture depredation, and from pile driving operations that may otherwise cause hearing damage. However, little is known about…