Exposing the grey seal as a major predator of harbour porpoises

Leopold, M. F.; Begeman, L.; van Bleijswijk, J. D. L.; IJsseldijk, L. L.; Witte, H. J.; Grone, A.
Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences (2014)

Harbour porpoises (Phocoena phocoena) stranding in large numbers around the southern North Sea with fatal, sharp-edged mutilations have spurred controversy among scientists, the fishing industry and conservationists, whose views about…


Life history of harbor porpoises (Phocoena phocoena) in Scottish (UK) waters

Learmonth, Jennifer A.; Murphy, Sinead; Luque, Patricia L.; Reid, Robert J.; Patterson, I. Anthony P.; Brownlow, Andrew; Ross, Harry M.; Barley, Jason P.; Begoña Santos, M.; Pierce, Graham J.
Mar Mam Sci (2014)

Life history parameters were determined for stranded and bycaught harbor porpoises (Phocoena phocoena) from Scottish (UK) waters (1992–2005). Fetal growth rate was 84.4 mm/mo and mean size at birth was…


Bigg’s (transient) killer whale predation on Dall’s porpoise (Phocoenoides dalli) and harbour porpoise (Phocoena phocoena)

McInnes, Josh D.; Cullen, Kelsey D.; Browne, Lynette M.; Dehalt, Annette; Templeman, Nick M.
Technical Report for the Royal British Columbia Museum (2015)

(...) Two separate predation events were documented off the coast of Vancouver Island, British Columbia between the years 2013-2014. Both predation events occurred on small cetaceans from the Phocoenidae family:…


Developing a new research tool for use in free-ranging cetaceans: recovering cortisol from harbour porpoise skin

Bechshoft, T.; Wright, A. J.; Weisser, J. J.; Teilmann, J.; Dietz, R.; Hansen, M.; Bjorklund, E.; Styrishave, B.
Conservation Physiology (2015)

We developed a chemical analytical procedure for sampling, extracting and determining epidermal skin cortisol concentrations (SCCs) in the harbour porpoise (Phocoena phocoena) using gas chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry. In brief, this…


Reproductive Failure in UK Harbour Porpoises Phocoena phocoena: Legacy of Pollutant Exposure?

Sinéad Murphy; Jonathan L Barber; Jennifer A. Learmonth; Fiona L. Read; Robert Deaville; Matthew W. Perkins; Andrew Brownlow; Nick Davison; Rod Penrose; Graham J. Pierce; Robin J. Law; Paul D. Jepson
PLOS ONE (2015)

Reproductive failure in mammals due to exposure to polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) can occur either through endocrine disrupting effects or via immunosuppression and increased disease risk. To investigate further, full necropsies…