Assessing fishery interaction on cetaceans stranded along the Italian coastline between 1986 and 2023

Monitoring stranded cetaceans represents a strategic method to assess their health, conservation status, and ecological role in the marine ecosystem. Efficient stranding networks and standardized protocols are essential to monitor this phenomenon and investigate its causes. This study assesses the evidence of fishery interaction on stranded cetacean carcasses found along the Italian coastline from 1986 to 2023. Evidence assessment and post-mortem investigation methods evolved over three macro-periods, from non-standardized reporting (1986-2014) to an integrated national stranding network (2015-2019), and finally to the creation of a new standardized, evidence-based diagnostic framework under the EU-funded LIFE DELFI project (LIFE18 NAT/IT/000942) (2020-2023). A total of 5355 cases were selected for this analysis. A literature review and evidence of interaction on stranded carcasses supported the categorization of findings, ranging from case history to pathological observations, allowing the assessment of temporal variation, demographic parameters, geographical distribution, and fishing gear identification. Evidence of fishery interaction was found in 12.89% of the cases (690/5355), with an annual average of 18.15 affected animals, and fishery interaction was identified as the likely cause of death in 10.32% of the cases. The most frequently reported species were Stenella coeruleoalba and Tursiops truncatus, showing significant differences in fishery interactions, particularly in relation to sex, age class, and geographical distribution. Adult male Tursiops truncatus exhibited a higher susceptibility to gillnet interaction in the Adriatic Sea. The results of this study emphasize the importance of standardized post-mortem investigations and long-term monitoring to identify risk hotspots, implement species- and region-specific mitigation strategies, and establish threshold values for cetacean conservation.

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Publication Details

Journal
PLoS ONE
Published
2025-09-17
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0330441
Citations
3
Primary Topic
Marine animal studies overview
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
5.15
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article

Assessing fishery interaction on cetaceans stranded along the Italian coastline between 1986 and 2023

Giuseppe Lucifora, Cristina Casalone, Federica Giorda, Cristiano Cocumelli et al.
3 citations
PLoS ONE
Marine animal studies overview
5.15
article

Assessing fishery interaction on cetaceans stranded along the Italian coastline between 1986 and 2023

Giuseppe Lucifora, Cristina Casalone, Federica Giorda, Cristiano Cocumelli, Silva Rubini, Antonio Pintore, Alessandra Di Donato, Fabio Di Nocera, Guido Pietroluongo, Donatella Belluscio, Anna Toffan, Bruno Cozzi, Ilaria Pascucci, Gianni Pavan, Cinzia Centelleghe, Michela Podestà, Roberto Puleio, Daniele Denurra, Sergio Migliore, Luca Ceolotto, Sandro Mazzariol, Leonardo Mariño, Giovanni Di Guardo, Cristina Canonico, Carla Grattarola, Letizia Marsili, Stefano Gavaudan, Ludovica Di Renzo, Enrica Berio, Gabriella Di Francesco, Giuliana Terracciano, A. Petrella, F. Cavaliere
article en
3 citations

Abstract

Monitoring stranded cetaceans represents a strategic method to assess their health, conservation status, and ecological role in the marine ecosystem. Efficient stranding networks and standardized protocols are essential to monitor this phenomenon and investigate its causes. This study assesses the evidence of fishery interaction on stranded cetacean carcasses found along the Italian coastline from 1986 to 2023. Evidence assessment and post-mortem investigation methods evolved over three macro-periods, from non-standardized reporting (1986-2014) to an integrated national stranding network (2015-2019), and finally to the creation of a new standardized, evidence-based diagnostic framework under the EU-funded LIFE DELFI project (LIFE18 NAT/IT/000942) (2020-2023). A total of 5355 cases were selected for this analysis. A literature review and evidence of interaction on stranded carcasses supported the categorization of findings, ranging from case history to pathological observations, allowing the assessment of temporal variation, demographic parameters, geographical distribution, and fishing gear identification. Evidence of fishery interaction was found in 12.89% of the cases (690/5355), with an annual average of 18.15 affected animals, and fishery interaction was identified as the likely cause of death in 10.32% of the cases. The most frequently reported species were Stenella coeruleoalba and Tursiops truncatus, showing significant differences in fishery interactions, particularly in relation to sex, age class, and geographical distribution. Adult male Tursiops truncatus exhibited a higher susceptibility to gillnet interaction in the Adriatic Sea. The results of this study emphasize the importance of standardized post-mortem investigations and long-term monitoring to identify risk hotspots, implement species- and region-specific mitigation strategies, and establish threshold values for cetacean conservation.

PLoS ONEVol. 20(9)
University of Siena (IT), University of Teramo (IT), University of Padua (IT), University of Pavia (IT), Interface (United States) (US), Centro Studi Industriali (IT), Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale Della Sicilia (IT), CoNISMa (IT), Museo Civico di Zoologia (IT), Laboratoire National de Référence (MA), Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale della Lombardia e dell'Emilia Romagna "Bruno Ubertini" (IT), Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale dell'Umbria e delle Marche (IT), Regione del Veneto (IT), Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale della Sardegna (IT), Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale delle Venezie (IT), Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale della Puglia e della Basilicata (IT), Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale dell'Abruzzo e del Molise G. Caporale (IT), Azienda USL di Pescara (IT), Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale delle Regioni Lazio e Toscana (IT), Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Mezzogiorno (IT), Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Piemonte Liguria e Valle d'Aosta (IT)
Openalex Percentile: Top 5%
Marine animal studies overview
5.15
DOIOpen Access PDFOpenAlex
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