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Rare sighting of an anomalously white harbour porpoise (Phocoena phocoena) in the Moray Firth, north-east Scotland

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  22 February 2013

Kevin P. Robinson  and
Gary N. Haskins
Kevin P. Robinson*
Affiliation:
Cetacean Research & Rescue Unit (CRRU), PO Box 11307, Banff AB45 3WB, Scotland, UK
Gary N. Haskins
Affiliation:
Cetacean Research & Rescue Unit (CRRU), PO Box 11307, Banff AB45 3WB, Scotland, UK
*
Correspondence should be addressed to: K.P. RobinsonCetacean Research & Rescue Unit, PO Box 11307, Banff AB45 3WB, Scotland, UK email: kev.robinson@crru.org.uk
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Abstract

This paper describes a rare sighting of an anomalously white harbour porpoise (Phocoena phocoena) in the coastal waters of the outer Moray Firth in north-east Scotland. The recording provides the first photographs of such an individual from the northern North Sea. At an estimated body length of 1.5 m, the present animal had evidently survived to adulthood, in spite of its condition, confirming the potential longevity of such hypo-pigmented individuals in the wild. Further recaptures of this naturally-marked animal may provide valuable information on the site fidelity and long-term spatial movements of these notoriously difficult to study cetaceans.

Keywords

harbour porpoisePhocoena phocoenahypo-pigmentationleucismMoray FirthNorth Sea
Type
Research Article
Information
Marine Biodiversity Records , Volume 6 , 2013 , e23
Copyright
Copyright © Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom 2013

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