Identification by Histological and Microsatellite Analyses of a Stranded Beaked Whale as that Struck Previously by a Jetfoil Operating in the Sea of Japan

Abstract

Histological and genetical studies were made to determine the identities of a large marine mammal struck by a jetfoil operating for the Sado Line (Niigata-Ryotsu route) in the Sea of Japan and a female Stejneger's beaked whale stranded on Kasashima beach, ca. 100km from the collision point, one day after the collision. Tissue remains (comprising skin, muscle and bone) taken from the intake pipe of the jetfoil were histologically identical to similar samples from the stranded specimen. rDNA typing for species identification showed an identical sequence of 107 bp, and microsatellite analysis demonstrated that the genotypes of both animals were identical at three loci. Accordingly, the animal struck by the jetfoil and that stranded on the beach are considered to be one and the same individual.