PDF(Pubmed)
Abstract：
The Mediterranean Sea hosts a population of fin whale (Balaenoptera physalus), the only species of Mysticete regularly occurring in the basin. Observed and inferred mortality suggests that the population is likely declining. Accordingly, understanding the causes of mortality and assessing the health status is pivotal to the survival of this endangered population. While such studies are inherently difficult for a highly roaming species with a pelagic distribution, mortality events provide the opportunity to investigate biological and epidemiological traits linked to these events, and evaluate the footprint of human activity, especially when long-term data series exist. We present a comprehensive spatial-temporal overview of fin whale mortality events along the Italian coast encompassing four centuries (1624-2021). Time series analysis was used to highlight structural changes in the evolution of mortality through time, while spatial-temporal patterns in the distribution of mortality events were assessed through emerging hot spot analysis methods. Recent mortality events (1964-2021) were further explored to evaluate, where possible, the primary causes of mortality and to identify anthropogenic threats of conservation concerns. This long-term survey offers the basis for an understanding of the health status of this B. physalus population and provides much-needed information for developing an effective management and conservation plan for the species in the region.
摘要：
地中海拥有长须鲸（Balaenopteraphysalus），唯一的神秘物种经常发生在盆地中。观察和推断的死亡率表明，人口可能正在下降。因此，了解死亡原因和评估健康状况对于这一濒危人群的生存至关重要。尽管对于具有远洋分布的高度漫游物种而言，此类研究本来就很困难，死亡事件提供了调查与这些事件相关的生物学和流行病学特征的机会,评估人类活动的足迹，特别是当存在长期数据序列时。我们提供了涵盖四个世纪（1624-2021年）的意大利海岸鳍鲸死亡事件的全面时空概述。时间序列分析用于强调死亡率随时间演变的结构变化，而死亡事件分布的时空模式是通过新兴的热点分析方法评估的。进一步探讨了最近的死亡事件(1964-2021年)，以评估，在可能的情况下,死亡的主要原因，并确定保护问题的人为威胁。这项长期调查为了解该菌株种群的健康状况提供了基础，并为制定该地区物种的有效管理和保护计划提供了急需的信息。
