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Cetacean Mortality Along the US East Coast Attributed to Morbillivirus

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Date Issued:
2016
Summary:
In 2013-2014, bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) experienced unusually high mortality along the East Coast of the US. Many deaths were attributed to Cetacean Morbillivirus (CeMV). My thesis research examined whether this high mortality could be attributed to the virus spreading more easily due to pollution, being picked up from a specific location, or unusual weather events. I found no evidence that pollutants or location corresponded with CeMV. There was the expected percentage of strandings based on the percentage of coastline therefore ruling out any linkage to location. Weather patterns appeared to have an effect on CeMV. When the temperatures were low, there were minimal strandings due to CeMV. Whereas, when temperatures were at their highest, there were also record numbers of CeMV. Thus, I concluded that high temperatures may have allowed increased spread of CeMV, which was compounded by increased movement of dolphins when waters are warmer.
Title: Cetacean Mortality Along the US East Coast Attributed to Morbillivirus.
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Name(s): Feliciano, Lyly
Wetterer, James K.
Arrieta, Diane
Harriet L. Wilkes Honors College
Type of Resource: text
Genre: Thesis
Date Created: Spring 2016
Date Issued: 2016
Publisher: Florida Atlantic University
Place of Publication: Boca Raton, Florida
Physical Form: pdf
Extent: 33 p.
Language(s): English
Summary: In 2013-2014, bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) experienced unusually high mortality along the East Coast of the US. Many deaths were attributed to Cetacean Morbillivirus (CeMV). My thesis research examined whether this high mortality could be attributed to the virus spreading more easily due to pollution, being picked up from a specific location, or unusual weather events. I found no evidence that pollutants or location corresponded with CeMV. There was the expected percentage of strandings based on the percentage of coastline therefore ruling out any linkage to location. Weather patterns appeared to have an effect on CeMV. When the temperatures were low, there were minimal strandings due to CeMV. Whereas, when temperatures were at their highest, there were also record numbers of CeMV. Thus, I concluded that high temperatures may have allowed increased spread of CeMV, which was compounded by increased movement of dolphins when waters are warmer.
Identifier: FA00003672 (IID)
Note(s): Includes bibliography.
Thesis (B.A.)--Florida Atlantic University, Harriet L. Wilkes Honors College, 2016.
Held by: Florida Atlantic University Libraries
Sublocation: Digital Library
Persistent Link to This Record: http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00003672
Use and Reproduction: Copyright © is held by the author, with permission granted to Florida Atlantic University to digitize, archive and distribute this item for non-profit research and educational purposes. Any reuse of this item in excess of fair use or other copyright exemptions requires permission of the copyright holder.
Host Institution: FAU

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