Far from home: record of a vagrant striped dolphin in Patagonia with notes on diet, parasites and age determination

LOIZAGA DE CASTRO, R., M.S. LEONARDI, M.F. GRANDI, N.A. GARCÍA & E.A. CRESPO

MAMMALIAN BIOLOGY

ELSEVIER GMBH

Año: 2011

1616-5047

The striped dolphin, Stenella coeruleoalba (Meyen, 1833), is a pelagic small cetacean with primary distribution  in tropical and subtropical waters. Here, we present a record of a vagrant individual of striped dolphin in patagonia, out of its distribution range. The animal was1 year old,measured 148 cm. and weighted 35Kg. The specimen was classified as immature due to the small development of the epididym and the absence of spermatozoa in testicular smear. Helminths found belong  to two families of Cestoda: cysts of  Phyllobothrium delphini (Phyllobothriidae) and Tetrabothrius sp. (Tetrabothriidae). Inaddition, 1 Pholeter gastrophilus (Digenea: Pholeteridae) wascollected. Inthestomachwefoundtwocephalopod beaks, identifiedas argentine           shortfin squid  and lesser shining bobtail and 6 crystallines of non-identified small fishes. This stranding event constitutes the most southern record for the species at theArgentine coast and highlights the importance of systematically recording strandings as an integra lpart of any program aimed at monitoring the well-being of local cetacean communities.