Genetic structure of the beaked whale genus Berardius in the North Pacific, with genetic evidence for a new species. Issue 1 (26th July 2016)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Morin, Phillip A.; Scott Baker, C.; Brewer, Reid S.; Burdin, Alexander M.; Dalebout, Merel L.; Dines, James P.; Fedutin, Ivan; Filatova, Olga; Hoyt, Erich; Jung, Jean‐Luc; Lauf, Morgane; Potter, Charles W.; Richard, Gaetan; Ridgway, Michelle; Robertson, Kelly M.; Wade, Paul R.
• Is Part Of: Marine mammal science. Volume 33:Issue 1(2017)
• Page Start: 96
• Page End: 111
• Publication Date: 2016-07-26
• Subjects: Baird's beaked whale -- Arnoux's beaked whale -- Ziphiidae -- mitochondrial DNA -- phylogenetics -- population structure -- cetacean; Marine mammals -- Congresses; Marine mammals -- Periodicals; Marine mammals, Fossil -- Periodicals; Mammifères marins -- Périodiques; 599.5
• DOI: 10.1111/mms.12345
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0824-0469

Abstract

Abstract: There are two recognized species in the genus Berardius, Baird's and Arnoux's beaked whales. In Japan, whalers have traditionally recognized two forms of Baird's beaked whales, the common "slate‐gray" form and a smaller, rare "black" form. Previous comparison of mtDNA control region sequences from three black specimens to gray specimens around Japan indicated that the two forms comprise different stocks and potentially different species. We have expanded sampling to include control region haplotypes of 178 Baird's beaked whales from across their range in the North Pacific. We identified five additional specimens of the black form from the Aleutian Islands and Bering Sea, for a total of eight "black" specimens. The divergence between mtDNA haplotypes of the black and gray forms of Baird's beaked whale was greater than their divergence from the congeneric Arnoux's beaked whale found in the Southern Ocean, and similar to that observed among other congeneric beaked whale species. Taken together, genetic evidence from specimens in Japan and across the North Pacific, combined with evidence of smaller adult body size, indicate presence of an unnamed species of Berardius in the North Pacific.