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Pirjo H. Mäkeläinen

  • Biodiversity Journal, 15 (3): 547-584

    Ingrid N. Visser, Tracy E. Cooper, David Cothran, Gerald McCormack, Heiko Grimm, Pirjo H. Mäkeläinen & Mathieu Cusson
    Images confirm records of Fijian orca (Orcinus orca Linnaeus, 1758), including a group with indistinct saddle patches
    https://doi.org/10.31396/Biodiv.Jour.2024.15.3.547.584

    ABSTRACT
    We collated (n=36) records of orca (Orcinus orca Linnaeus, 1758, also known as the killer whale (Cetacea Delphinidae) in the waters of the Republic of Fiji, South Pacific Ocean. Using standardised criteria, we classified these records into Confirmed, Presumed and Unconfirmed. We then conflated replicated records to create (n=12) unique meta-records between 1994-2024. We confirm, for the first time with photographs/video, the species as present in Fijian waters with evidence (photos/video) for (n=6) records between 2006–2024 which illustrate species-specific characteristics. From within that dataset, we report on a group of five orca which had either extremely faint ‘belt’ shaped saddle patches, or no saddle patches. Based on this pigmentation anomaly we consider that they may be an aberrant group or belong to a previously undescribed tropical ecotype.