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The first confirmed report of the harbour porpoise (Phocoena phocoena) in the Turkish Aegean Sea

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 March 2009

H. Güçlüsoy*
Affiliation:
Dokuz Eylül University, Institute of Marine Sciences and Technology, Bakü Bul. 100, 35340 Inciralti, İzmir, Turkey
*
Correspondence should be addressed to: H. Güçlüsoy, Dokuz Eylül University, Institute of Marine Sciences and Technology, Bakü Bul. 100, 35340 Inciralti, İzmir, Turkey email: [email protected]
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Abstract

The harbour porpoise, Phocoena phocoena, is distributed throughout the continental shelf waters of the northern hemisphere. Although the species is known to occur in the Black Sea and the Sea of Marmara off the coast of Turkey, to date no porpoises have been reported along the Aegean Sea coast of this country. This paper provides the first reported stranding of the harbour porpoise on this coastline. This is however, not thought to provide evidence of a separate population, rather it is thought that it may be part of the Black Sea population. It may demonstrate a wider or possible re-distribution of its range than previously thought.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
Copyright © Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom 2007

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References

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