We present new broad-band optical and near-infrared CCD imaging together with
deep optical intermediate-resolution spectroscopy of Mkn 1087 and its
surrounding objects. We analyze the morphology and colors of the stellar
populations of the brightest objects, some of them star-formation areas, as
well as the kinematics, physical conditions and chemical composition of the
ionized gas associated with them. Mkn 1087 does not host an Active Galactic
Nucleus, but it could be a Luminous Compact Blue Galaxy. Although it was
classified as a suspected Wolf-Rayet galaxy, we do not detect the spectral
features of these sort of massive stars. Mkn 1087 shows morphological and
kinematical features that can be explained assuming that it is in interaction
with two nearby galaxies: the bright KPG 103a and a dwarf (MB∼−18)
star-forming companion. We argue that this dwarf companion is not a tidal
object but an external galaxy because of its low metallicity [12+log(O/H) =
8.24] with respect to the one derived for Mkn 1087 [12+log(O/H) = 8.57] and its
kinematics. Some of the non-stellar objects surrounding Mkn 1087 are connected
by bridges of matter with the main body, host star-formation events and show
similar abundances despite their different angular distances. These facts,
together their kinematics, suggest that they are tidal dwarf galaxies formed
from material stripped from Mkn 1087. A bright star-forming region at the south
of Mkn 1087 (knot #7) does not show indications of being a tidal galaxy or the
product of a merging process as suggested in previous works. We argue that Mkn
1087 and its surroundings should be considered a group of galaxies.Comment: Accepted by A&A, 21 pages, 13 figures, 8 table
