Pathological investigations on sperm whales stranded on the Belgian and Dutch coasts
Jauniaux, T.; Brosens, L.; Jacquinet, E.; Lambrigts, D.; Coignoul, F. (1997). Pathological investigations on sperm whales stranded on the Belgian and Dutch coasts. Bull. Kon. Belg. Inst. Natuurwet. Biologie 67(suppl.): 63-67
In: Bulletin van het Koninklijk Belgisch Instituut voor Natuurwetenschappen. Biologie = Bulletin de l'Institut Royal des Sciences Naturelles de Belgique. Biologie. Koninklijk Belgisch Instituut voor Natuurwetenschappen: Bruxelles. ISSN 0374-6429
Also appears in:
Jacques, G.; Lambertsen, R.H. (Ed.) (1997). Potvissterfte in de Noordzee: wetenschap en beheer = Sperm whale deaths in the North Sea: science and management. Bulletin van het Koninklijk Belgisch Instituut voor Natuurwetenschappen. Biologie = Bulletin de l'Institut Royal des Sciences Naturelles de Belgique. Biologie, 67(Suppl.). Koninklijk Belgisch Instituut voor Natuurwetenschappen: Brussel. 133 + synthese (dutch) pp., more
On November 18, 1994, four sperm whales were discovered dead on the Belgian coast, and on January 12, 1995, three live sperm whales stranded on the Dutch coast. Necropsies were conducted following a standardized procedure and samples were collected. Two Belgian sperm whales had a severe weight deficit and the Dutch sperm whales had reductions in blubber thickness. Agonal lesions such as visceral passive congestion and lung edema were due to the stranding. Significant lesions included acute ulcerations of the skin and acute to subacute ulcerative stomatitis. Severe diffuse subacute to chronic ulcerative external otitis was noted in four animals. Progressive weakness and/or potential alterations of echolocation might have predisposed these sperm whales to visit shallow waters - strong social cohesion and complex topography along the Dutch and Belgian coasts being the final factors leading to the stranding.
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