Author:
Bell CH,Kemper CM,Conran JG
Abstract
Examination of 211 Delphinus specimens from the coasts of Western Australia to New South
Wales, including Tasmania, was conducted using 62 quantitative and 11 qualitative variables.
After refining the dataset, multivariate analyses were performed on 130 cranially mature
specimens using 21 cranial variables. MANOVA showed males to be slightly larger than
females, but with substantial overlap, allowing analyses to combine genders. UPGMA Cluster
Analysis and MDS Ordination showed three largely overlapping groups based on a size
gradient. K-means analysis of these groups found no significant differences and confirmed a
size gradient. Discriminant analysis of specimens grouped by geography and water depth
showed a tendency for large skulls to be from coasts adjacent to deep water and small skulls
from shallow water coasts. Cranial measurements were significant, postcranial measurements
and features were not. Tooth counts were within the range for D. delphis for all specimens
examined. This study confirms genetic evidence for a single continuously variable species
(Delphinus delphis Linnaeus, 1758) in southern Australian waters. Compared with either D.
delphis or D. capensis from the eastern North Pacific, the skulls of D. delphis in southern
Australia were more variable for many characters.
Subject
Animal Science and Zoology,Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics
Cited by
21 articles.
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