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Records of a New Cetacean Species of the Genus Berardius from Russian Waters

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Abstract

Until recently, it has been believed that only one cetacean species of the genus Berardius, the Baird’s beaked whale (Berardius bairdii Stejneger, 1883), inhabits the northern Pacific Ocean. However, a genetic analysis of tissue samples and morphometric data provide convincing evidence for the existence of a previously undescribed Berardius species sympatric to Baird’s beaked whale, which is referred to as “black” beaked whale. The high probability of occurrence of the black beaked whale in Russian waters is established and its possible range is described in the present study. A genetic analysis of the mitochondrial DNA control region was carried out for 28 new specimens of the genus Berardius from four Far Eastern regions. According to the results, all specimens from the Commander Islands and Kamchatka Gulf belonged to the phylogroup of the Baird’s beaked whale. Of the two dead animals stranded on the Kunashir Island coast, one was identified as Baird’s beaked whale and the other as black beaked whale. Another two black beaked whales were found on the eastern coast of Sakhalin Island. These are the first records of the new Berardius species from the Russian territory confirmed by genetic analysis.

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ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

We are grateful to E. Kozlovsky and E. Linnik from the Kurilskiy State Nature Reserve, to members of the Boomerang Club (Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk), to O. Mukhametova from the Sakhalin Branch, Russian Federal Research Institute of Fisheries and Oceanography, to D. Lisitsyn, the head of the Sakhalin Environmental Watch Regional Public Organization, as well as to S. Fomin, G. Zhihoreva, V. Vertyankin, and P. van der Wolf for their assistance in collecting samples and for the information provided. As well, we thank A. Sevalnev, a resident of Yuzhno-Kurilsk, and Yu. Yurdanov, a resident of Sakhalin, who kindly provided information and photographs. Special thanks are due to J.-L. Jung for recommendations on the use of primers, to W. Bachara for the support with information on beaked whale strandings and for advice on species identification, to M. Guzeyev and volunteers P. Chukmasov, P. Novaykin, I. Vaga, A. Reznikov, and O. Vlasova who participated in field studies on Bering Island, as well as to the administration and staff of the Marakov Commander Islands Nature and Biosphere Reserve, where we carried out our field studies under a joint research program.

Funding

This study was financially supported by the Russian Foundation for Basic Research (grant no. 18-04-00462).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Biology, Moscow State University, 119234, Moscow, Russia

    I. D. Fedutin & O. A. Filatova

  2. Severtsov Institute of Ecology and Evolution, Russian Academy of Sciences, 119071, Moscow, Russia

    I. G. Meschersky & O. V. Titova

  3. Beringia National Park, 689251, Provideniya, Russia

    O. A. Filatova & I. G. Bobyr

  4. Kamchatka Branch, Pacific Geographical Institute, Far Eastern Branch, Russian Academy of Sciences, 683000, Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, Russia

    A. M. Burdin

  5. Whale and Dolphin Conservation, DT65DD, Bridport, Dorset, United Kingdom

    E. Hoyt

Authors
  1. I. D. Fedutin
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  2. I. G. Meschersky
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  3. O. A. Filatova
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  4. O. V. Titova
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  5. I. G. Bobyr
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  6. A. M. Burdin
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  7. E. Hoyt
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to I. D. Fedutin.

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Conflict of interests. The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Statement on the welfare of animals. All applicable international, national, and/or institutional guidelines for the care and use of animals were followed. The intravital sampling of skin and subcutaneous fat by the remote biopsy technique did not cause harm to the health of the Baird’s beaked whales, because all manipulations were performed by qualified specialists using the standard method tested in a long-term research. During the operations, special attention was paid to minimizing the disturbance to animals. These studies were carried out under the agreed program of joint scientific research of the Marakov Commander Islands Nature and Biosphere Reserve and the Kamchatka Branch, Pacific Geographical Institute, Far Eastern Branch, Russian Academy of Sciences, under the supervision of the staff of the reserve.

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Translated by E. Shvetsov

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Fedutin, I.D., Meschersky, I.G., Filatova, O.A. et al. Records of a New Cetacean Species of the Genus Berardius from Russian Waters. Russ J Mar Biol 46, 199–206 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1134/S1063074020030050

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1134/S1063074020030050

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