Post-mortem findings and causes of death of harbour porpoises (Phocoena phocoena) stranded from 1990 to 2000 along the coastlines of Belgium and northern France

peer reviewedBetween the,ears 1990 and 2000, an attempt was made to determine the causes of death of 55 harbour porpoises stranded along the Belgian and northern French coasts. From 1990 to 1996, only five carcasses were collected as against seven in 1997, eight in 1998, 27 in 1999 and eight in 2000. The sex ratio was normal and most of the animals were juvenile. The most common findings were emaciation, severe parasitosis and pneumonia. A few cases of fishing net entanglement were observed. The main microscopical lesions were acute pneumonia, massive lung oedema, enteritis, hepatitis and gastritis. Encephalitis was observed in six cases. No evidence of morbillivirus infection was detected. Pneumonia was associated with bacteria or parasites, or both. The causes of death and the lesions were similar to those previously reported in other countries bordering the North Sea. The cause of the increased numbers of carcasses in 1999 was unclear but did not include viral epizootics or net entanglement. A temporary increase in the porpoise populatiou in the southern North Sea may have been responsible. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved

Pathological survey of dead marine mammals along the Belgian seashore

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Etude séro-épidémiologique des infections à herpèsvirus chez les ruminants sauvages en France

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Observations on the helminths of harbour porpoises ( Phocoena phocoena

peer reviewedBetween February 1990 and July 1991, 18 harbour porpoises (Phocoena phocoena) and 248 common guillemots (Uria aalge), found dead along the Belgian and German coasts, were examined for their burden of helminths. A total of three species were found in the guillemots (one cestode, one nematode and one pentastomid), and six species in the porpoises (one trematode, one cestode and four nematodes). Among the guillemots the burden of helminths was not statistically different between juvenile and adult birds. The deaths of the birds were apparently not related to the parasite infections. In contrast, the adult porpoises were more heavily parasitised than the juveniles, except for one young porpoise stranded on the Belgian coast. In the porpoises, four species of parasites had a pathological effect and Torynurus convolutus was responsible for the death of one animal from the Belgian coast and three from the German coast