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While understanding mating systems can provide critical insight into a population's long‐term persistence and resilience, such information remains limited for most baleen whales. However, extensive research on the western gray whales that feed off Sakhalin Island, Russia, led to the collection of biopsy samples from 75% of the 207 whales photo‐identified between 1994 and 2011, providing a rare opportunity to learn about this s...
The long‐beaked common dolphin of the eastern Pacific Ocean: Taxonomic status and redescription of Delphinus bairdiiNARA Subscribed
Neritic, long‐beaked common dolphins have been described as species distinct from the more oceanic and globally distributed short‐beaked species, Delphinus delphis , although recent molecular studies have challenged this view. In the eastern North Pacific (ENP), the taxonomic status of the long‐beaked ( bairdii ) form has been controversial since its original description in 1873, and has vacillated between species, subspecies,...
Best practices for collecting and preserving marine mammal biological samples in the ‘omics eraNARA Subscribed
The recent rise of ‘omics and other molecular research technologies alongside improved techniques for tissue preservation have broadened the scope of marine mammal research. Collecting biological samples from wild marine mammals is both logistically challenging and expensive. To enhance the power of marine mammal research, great effort has been made in both the field and the laboratory to ensure the scientific integrity of sam...
The Irrawaddy dolphin ( Orcaella brevirostris ) is an endangered cetacean that ranges throughout much of Southeast Asia and lives in coastal, estuarine, and riverine habitats including three river systems: Ayeyarwady, Mekong, and Mahakam. Many populations face risks from human interference, but overall rangewide diversity and connectivity is not well‐understood. Here we sequenced 77 complete mitogenomes from across the range o...
Genetic sex determination improves Canadian Atlantic salmon ( Salmo salar ) population assessmentsNARA Subscribed
Estimating egg deposition for Atlantic salmon population assessments is made difficult by their lack of sexual dimorphism prior to the autumn spawning season. We quantified the effect of sex misclassification from subjective examination of external morphology on egg deposition estimates in four Atlantic salmon populations across multiple years. Sex classification of Canadian salmon using the genetic sex marker ( sd Y) was accu...
Small, island-associated populations of cetaceans have evolved around numerous oceanic islands, likely due to habitat discontinuities between nearshore and offshore waters. However, little is known about the ecology and structure of cetacean populations around the Mariana Islands, a remote archipelago in the western Pacific Ocean. We present sighting, photo-identification, and genetic data collected during twelve years of surv...
To help evaluate the distribution, residency, population size and structuring (and hence conservation status) of the poorly known false killer whale Pseudorca crassidens in northern Australian waters, we undertook studies of sightings, movement patterns based on satellite telemetry, and genetics. Sighting data indicates that false killer whales are regular, year-round inhabitants of coastal areas of northern Australia. Satelli...
Adults of many free‐ranging delphinid species cannot be reliably sexed at sea. Sexually mature, known‐sex adult short‐finned pilot, pygmy killer, melon‐headed, and false killer whales were profiled from at‐sea photos to assess proportional fin and body dimorphism. Males of all four species had larger dorsal fins proportional to anterior body length. False killer whales showed no further dimorphism, while melon‐headed whales sh...
Comprehensive analysis of epigenetic clocks reveals associations between disproportionate biological ageing and hippocampal volumeNARA Subscribed
The concept of age acceleration, the difference between biological age and chronological age, is of growing interest, particularly with respect to age-related disorders, such as Alzheimer’s Disease (AD). Whilst studies have reported associations with AD risk and related phenotypes, there remains a lack of consensus on these associations. Here we aimed to comprehensively investigate the relationship between five recognised meas...
Population structure of North Pacific gray whales in light of trans‐Pacific movementsNARA Subscribed
Recent findings that some gray whales that feed off Sakhalin Island (SI), Russia, in the western North Pacific (WNP) overwinter in the eastern North Pacific (ENP) indicate that population structure in this species is more complex than originally thought. We generated mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) control region sequences and microsatellite genotypes ( n = 12 loci) from 156 whales sampled off SI and compared them to available data...
Runs of homozygosity in killer whale genomes provide a global record of demographic historiesNARA Subscribed
Runs of homozygosity (ROH) occur when offspring inherit haplotypes that are identical by descent from each parent. Length distributions of ROH are informative about population history; specifically, the probability of inbreeding mediated by mating system and/or population demography. Here, we investigated whether variation in killer whale ( Orcinus orca ) demographic history is reflected in genome‐wide heterozygosity and ROH l...
Harbor porpoise in the North Pacific are found in coastal waters from southern California to Japan, but population structure is poorly known outside of a few local areas. We used multiplexed amplicon sequencing of 292 loci and genotyped clusters of single nucleotide polymoirphisms as microhaplotypes ( N = 271 samples) in addition to mitochondrial (mtDNA) sequence data ( N = 413 samples) to examine the genetic structure from sa...
Reconstruction of the demographic and evolutionary history of populations assuming a consensus tree‐like relationship can mask more complex scenarios, which are prevalent in nature. An emerging genomic toolset, which has been most comprehensively harnessed in the reconstruction of human evolutionary history, enables molecular ecologists to elucidate complex population histories. Killer whales have limited extrinsic barriers to...
Host‐derived population genomics data provides insights into bacterial and diatom composition of the killer whale skinNARA Subscribed
Recent exploration into the interactions and relationship between hosts and their microbiota has revealed a connection between many aspects of the host's biology, health and associated micro‐organisms. Whereas amplicon sequencing has traditionally been used to characterize the microbiome, the increasing number of published population genomics data sets offers an underexploited opportunity to study microbial profiles from the h...