New Additions to the Mammal List Documented in the Portuguese Red Data Book.

This study outlines the procedures used for collecting, processing, and categorizing data on 16 new mammal species for mainland Portugal, belonging to four taxonomic groups: Eulipotyphla (1), Chiroptera (4), Rodentia (2), and Cetacea (9). Data collection and processing encompassed field and lab work and bibliographic compilation. Data categorization involves, whenever possible, the assessment of the approximate number of mature individuals in populations, the extent of occurrence, and the area of occupancy.

Molecular characterization of cetacean poxviruses along the coast of mainland Portugal.

Cetacean poxvirus (CePV) is the causative agent of tattoo skin disease (TSD) in dolphins, porpoises and whales, a condition characterized by pinhole, ring-like lesions or generalized tattoo-like skin lesions. This study genetically characterized cetacean poxviruses from stranded animals along mainland Portugal. Samples from skin lesions compatible with TSD were obtained from 4 odontocete species (Delphinus delphis, Stenella coeruleoalba, Phocoena phocoena, and Tursiops truncatus) and analyzed using a conventional PCR assay targeting the DNA polymerase gene partially.

Harbor porpoise losing its edge: Genetic time series suggests a rapid population decline in Iberian waters over the last 30 years.

Impact of climate change is expected to be especially noticeable at the edges of a species' distribution, where they meet suboptimal habitat conditions. In Mauritania and Iberia, two genetically differentiated populations of harbor porpoises () form an ecotype adapted to local upwelling conditions and distinct from other ecotypes further north on the NE Atlantic continental shelf and in the Black Sea. By analyzing the evolution of mitochondrial genetic variation in the Iberian population between two temporal cohorts (1990-2002 vs.

Microplastics in Cetaceans Stranded on the Portuguese Coast.

This study characterises microplastics in small cetaceans on the coast of Portugal and assesses the relationship between several biological variables and the amount of detected microplastics. The intestines of 38 stranded dead cetaceans were processed in the laboratory, with digestion methods adapted to the amount of organic matter in each sample. The influence of several biological and health variables (e.

Harbour Porpoise Abundance in Portugal over a 5-Year Period and Estimates of Potential Distribution.

The Iberian porpoise population is small and under potentially unsustainable removal by fisheries bycatch. Recently, a marine Site of Community Importance (SCI) was legally approved in Portugal, but no measures ensued to promote porpoise conservation. Information about porpoise abundance and distribution is fundamental to guide any future conservation measures.

Speciation in the deep: genomics and morphology reveal a new species of beaked whale .

The deep sea has been described as the last major ecological frontier, as much of its biodiversity is yet to be discovered and described. Beaked whales (ziphiids) are among the most visible inhabitants of the deep sea, due to their large size and worldwide distribution, and their taxonomic diversity and much about their natural history remain poorly understood. We combine genomic and morphometric analyses to reveal a new Southern Hemisphere ziphiid species, Ramari's beaked whale, , whose name is linked to the Indigenous peoples of the lands from which the species holotype and paratypes were recovered.

Floating marine litter and their risks to cetaceans off Portugal.

Floating Dangerous Debris For Cetaceans (DDFC) and cetacean abundances were assessed by shipboard visual surveys off continental Portugal. Plastic litter (other than fishing gear) was the most abundant category, corresponding to 56.53% of the total recorded DDFC.

Striped dolphins as trace element biomonitoring tools in oceanic waters: Accounting for health-related variables.

In Europe, monitoring contaminant concentrations and their effects in the marine environment is required under the Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD, 2008/56/EC). The striped dolphin (Stenella coeruleoalba) is the most abundant small cetacean species in Portuguese oceanic waters, representing a potential biomonitoring tool of contaminant levels in offshore waters. Concentrations of nine trace elements were evaluated by ICP-MS in kidney, liver and muscle samples of 31 striped dolphins stranded in the Portuguese continental coast.

Mercury, Lead and Cadmium Concentrations in Talpa occidentalis and in Their Digeneans of the Genus Ityogonimus.

Introduction: Many parasites living in aquatic ecosystems are useful indicators of environmental health. On the other hand, information is scarcer with respect to the use of helminth parasites of vertebrates living in terrestrial ecosystems as monitoring tools for toxic element environmental pollution. The present study evaluates the suitability of the model Talpa occidentalis/Ityogonimus spp.

Trace elements in loggerhead turtles (Caretta caretta) stranded in mainland Portugal: Bioaccumulation and tissue distribution.

Pollution is among the most significant threats that endanger sea turtles worldwide. Waters off the Portuguese mainland are acknowledged as important feeding grounds for juvenile loggerheads. However, there is no data on trace element concentrations in marine turtles occurring in these waters.

Bioaccumulation of trace element concentrations in common dolphins (Delphinus delphis) from Portugal.

The common dolphin (Delphinus delphis) is one of the most abundant species in Atlantic Iberia, representing a potentially important tool to assess the bioaccumulation of trace elements in the Iberian marine ecosystem. Nine elements (As, Cd, Cu, Hg, Mn, Ni, Pb, Se and Zn) were evaluated in 36 dolphins stranded in continental Portugal. Dolphins had increasing Hg concentrations (16.

The microbiome of a striped dolphin (Stenella coeruleoalba) stranded in Portugal.

Infectious diseases with epizootic consequences have not been fully studied in marine mammals. Presently, the unprecedented depth of sequencing, made available by high-throughput approaches, allows detailed comparisons of the microbiome in health and disease. This is the first report of the striped dolphin microbiome in different body sites.

New insight into dolphin morbillivirus phylogeny and epidemiology in the northeast Atlantic: opportunistic study in cetaceans stranded along the Portuguese and Galician coasts.

Background: Screening Atlantic cetacean populations for Cetacean Morbillivirus (CeMV) is essential to understand the epidemiology of the disease. In Europe, Portugal and Spain have the highest cetacean stranding rates, mostly due to the vast extension of coastline. Morbillivirus infection has been associated with high morbidity and mortality in cetaceans, especially in outbreaks reported in the Mediterranean Sea.

Biological variables and health status affecting inorganic element concentrations in harbour porpoises (Phocoena phocoena) from Portugal (western Iberian Peninsula).

The coastal preferences of harbour porpoise (Phocoena phocoena) intensify their exposure to human activities. The harbour porpoise Iberian population is presently very small and information about the threats it endures is vital for the conservation efforts that are being implemented to avoid local extinction. The present study explored the possible relation between the accumulation of trace elements by porpoises and their sex, body length, nutritional state, presence of parasites and gross pathologies.

Spatial distribution of floating marine debris in offshore continental Portuguese waters.

This study presents data on abundance and density of macro-floating marine debris (FMD), including their composition, spatial distribution and potential sources off continental Portugal. FMD were assessed by shipboard visual surveys covering ±252,833 km(2) until the 220 nm limit. The FMD average density was 2.

Ingestion of marine litter by loggerhead sea turtles, Caretta caretta, in Portuguese continental waters.

The accumulation of litter in marine and coastal environments is a major threat to marine life. Data on marine litter in the gastrointestinal tract of stranded loggerhead turtles, Caretta caretta, found along the Portuguese continental coast was presented. Out of the 95 analysed loggerheads, litter was present in 56 individuals (59.

Ecological variables influencing trace element concentrations in bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus, Montagu 1821) stranded in continental Portugal.

Both the conservation status of bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) (Habitats Directive 92/43/CEE, Annex II) and the Marine Strategy Framework Directive demand for data on their ecology and anthropogenic threats. To evaluate the bottlenose dolphin's toxicological status in continental Portugal, several trace elements (As, Cd, Cu, Hg, Mn, Ni, Pb, Se, Zn) were determined in 25 stranded individuals. The potential effect of sex, body length and stranding location on trace element concentrations was analysed.

Effect of Intestinal Tapeworm Clestobothrium crassiceps on Concentrations of Toxic Elements and Selenium in European Hake Merluccius merluccius from the Gulf of Lion (Northwestern Mediterranean Sea).

The capacity for heavy metal bioaccumulation by some fish parasites has been demonstrated, and their contribution to decreasing metal concentrations in tissues of parasitized fish has been hypothesized. The present study evaluated the effect of the cestode Clestobothrium crassiceps on the accumulation of trace elements in 30 European hake, Merluccius merluccius, in Spain (half of them infested by C. crassiceps).

Ultrastructure of the spermatozoon of the trematode Notocotylus noyeri (Digenea: Notocotylidae), a parasite of Microtus arvalis (Rodentia: Cricetidae).

In the present paper, we describe the ultrastructure of the spermatozoon of the notocotylid Notocotylus noyeri (Joyeux, 1922) by means of transmission electron microscopy. The mature spermatozoon of N. noyeri exhibits the general pattern described in the majority of digeneans: two axonemes of the 9 + "1" pattern of the Trepaxonemata, nucleus, mitochondria, parallel cortical microtubules, spine-like bodies and ornamentation of the plasma membrane.

Total mercury and selenium concentrations in Sarpa salpa and Balistes capriscus and in their respective Digenean endoparasites Robphildollfusium fractum and Neoapocreadium chabaudi from Tunisia.

The present study reports the levels of mercury and selenium in Sarpa salpa and Balistes capriscus collected along the coast of Mahdia and Sfax (Tunisia). The systems constituted by S. salpa and Robphildollfusium fractum and by B.

The system Tetrabothrius bassani (Tetrabothriidae)/Morus bassanus (Sulidae) as a bioindicator of marine heavy metal pollution.

Helminths are known to accumulate higher amounts of certain elements than their hosts. The present study assesses the accumulation of heavy metals in Tetrabothrius bassani and in its host, the Atlantic gannet (Morus bassanus) found dead due to bycatch along the seashore in the centre of Portugal. Samples of kidney, liver and pectoral muscle of 23 infected gannets, as well as specimens of T.

Ultrastructural characters of the spermatozoon of the digenean Hypocreadium caputvadum Kacem et al., 2011 (Lepocreadioidea: Lepocreadiidae), an intestinal parasite of Balistes capriscus in Tunisia.

The ultrastructural organization of the spermatozoon of the digenean Hypocreadium caputvadum (Lepocreadioidea: Lepocreadiidae) is described. Live digeneans were collected from Balistes capriscus (Teleostei: Balistidae) from the Gulf of Gabès, Tunisia (Eastern Mediterranean Sea). The mature spermatozoon of H.