A CETACEAN BIOPSY SYSTEM USING LIGHTWEIGHT PNEUMATIC DARTS, AND ITS EFFECT ON THE BEHAVIOR OF KILLER WHALES

Lightweight untethered pneumatic darts were used to biopsy killer whal es, Orcinus area, for genetic and toxicological analysis. Samples of e pidermal, dermal, and hypodermal tissue weighing approximately 0.5 g w ere obtained by 65% of the 91 darts fired during the study. Sufficient DNA for multiple analyses was extracted from the biopsies, which were also used for fatty acid and toxic contaminant analyses. Reactions su ch as momentary shakes or accelerations were observed after 81% of the dart hits and 53% of the misses. Aversion to the research vessel was assessed by reapproaching target whales after the sampling attempts. I n 6% of the hits and 8% of the misses aversion to the research boat in creased immediately following the attempt. No similar increases in ave rsion were seen when killer whales were reapproached one day to one ye ar after being hit. The darts were also tested successfully on humpbac k whales, Megaptera novaeangliae. In view of the simplicity of the sys tem, its effectiveness in acquiring multipurpose samples, and the appa rently short-term disturbance it caused, it is recommended for future cetacean biopsy studies.