42 dead whales found in Argentina

[AlaskaDenise]

This deserves watching, as whales can get influenza.
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BUENOS AIRES - Forty-two pilot whales beached themselves and died in a small bay in the southern Argentine province of Chubut, a marine expert has said.


?We counted 42 dead pilot whales in an area that?s not much more than a small bay,? Centro Nacional Patagonico researcher Enrique Crespo said.

The finding ?dispelled our fears that the discovery of bodies could extend much farther south, something that luckily did not occur?, Crespo told Argentine media.

The whales were found in Bustamante Bay, south of Chubut?s capital, Rawson, Crespo said, adding that blood and tissue samples taken from the animals would be analysed to try to determine what killed them.

?Two females were pregnant and in two other cases the hearing apparatus had parasites, but this does not mean that was the cause of disorientation that ended with the beaching,? the marine expert said.

http://blog.taragana.com/n/42-dead-whales-found-in-argentina-170829/

[AlaskaDenise]

Re: 42 dead whales found in Argentina

The NCBI database only shows:

AAA43215 566 Whale HA H13N2 USA 1984 Influenza A virus (A/pilot whale/Maine/328 HN/1984(H13N2))

HOWEVER, a little further research will show us that the 1976 human/H1N1 was found in South Pacific whales at that time. When I looked at just the HA from 1976 human/H1N1 and current novel Hsw1N1, there were 69 matching genes.

So I'll speculate that the novel H1N1 infections in Argentina - both humans and swine - MAY be responsible for these whale deaths.

Read this article about the 1976 whale influenza and it's similarity to 1976 humans, WS/33, swine H1N1 from the 30s, etc. It's all too familiar.

See:

Comparison of influenza viruses isolated from man and from whales

AbstractFour isolates of influenza virus strains from Moscow and Habarovsk that caused outbreaks of influenza in November and December 1977 in several cities of the USSR were studied and their haemagglutinins and neuraminidases were compared with those of other human and animal influenza viruses including A/whale/Pacific Ocean/76. In H1 tests these isolates, designated A/USSR/77, reacted with immune serum against A/FM/1/47 (H1N1) to the homologous titre, and with antiserum against A/whale/PO/19/76 virus to 1/8 of the homologous titre. In neuraminidase inhibition tests all A/USSR/77 isolates showed the presence of human N1 type neuraminidase, more closely related to A/sw/New Jersey/76 (Hsw1N1) than to A/FM/1/47 (H1N1) virus. The haemagglutinin of A/whale/Pacific Ocean/19/76 virus occupies an intermediate position between H0 and H1, but its neuraminidase is close to Nav2. The virus from whales multiplies better at low (28?C) and at high (40?C) temperatures than do the viruses of human origin that were tested.

Full text

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http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articlerender.fcgi?tool=pubmed&pubmedid=310734

[Sally Furniss]

Re: 42 dead whales found in Argentina

Massive beaching of pilot whales in Patagonian coast

Almost 50 dead pilot whales were found stranded Sunday on a beach in the Argentine Patagonia province of Chubut. The cause of the stranding at Bah?a Bustamante, and later death, remain a mystery, according to the regional press.

The dead whales were found in an area rich in marine life The dead whales were found in an area rich in marine life

Experts and researchers from the Patagonia National Centre which monitor wild life in the region have been working since Sunday trying to determine the reasons for the beaching, a common phenomenon among this type of whales. The stranded mammals were found by workers from a local company which collects sea weeds for the extraction of agar-agar.

Mass stranding of pilot whales, which are very social and travel in large groups usually of 20-90 animals are not uncommon and at times can involve up to several hundred of the mammals. The first exams of the stranded whales in Bah?a Bustamante, measuring between 2 and 7 meters, showed no evidence of injuries or attacks.

Bah?a Bustamante is 170 kilometres north of Comodoro Rivadavia and is an area with coves and several islands very rich in marine mammals and birds.

Stranding can be caused by navigating problems when following the leader, including possible magnetic field irregularities. Pilot whales are extremely pack-minded and will always follow the leader even in risk conditions. Like the larger killer whale, pilot whales are members of the dolphin family. They can be seen along Patagonia waters from May to November, when whale-watching trips are available for tourists.

Pilot Whales are amongst the most common and widely-distributed of the marine mammals in the cetacean order. They are jet black or dark grey with a grey or white diagonal stripe behind each eye, and a large, round forehead (melon). It is sometimes known as the pothead whale because the shape of its head reminded early whalers of black cooking pots.

The long-finned species prefers slightly cooler waters than the short-finned and is divided into two populations. The larger group is found in a circumpolar band in the Southern ocean running from approximately 20? S to 65? S. It may be sighted off the coasts of Chile, Argentina, South Africa, Australia and New Zealand. There are estimated to be in excess of 200,000 individuals in this group. The second population is much smaller and inhabits the North Atlantic Ocean.

This is not the first time this kind of beaching happens in the Argentine Patagonia area: in 1991, almost 200 pilot whales were stranded and died twenty kilometers north in Punta Tafor. Closer in time two similar incidents occurred in 2002 but involving other type of whales.

http://en.mercopress.com/2009/09/14/massive-beaching-of-pilot-whales-in-patagonian-coast