Effect of the 1990 die-off in the northern Italian seas on thedevelopmental stability of the striped dolphin Stenella coeruleoalba(Meyen, 1833)

摘要

Developmental stability of the community of striped dolphins, Stenella coeruleoalba (Meyen, 1833), that died during the Mediterranean epizootic of 1990 was compared with that of the population prior to and after the epizootic, to assess whether animals that died were the developmentally less stable individuals in the population. Significantly higher levels of fluctuating asymmetry (FA) were found in those individuals that died. Tissue levels of organochlorine pesticide residues and PCBs were determined and the correlation between contaminant concentration and FA was tested. No correlations were found between the contaminant level and FA.