Nadine Lysiak

University of Massachusetts Boston | UMB · Department of Biology

Baleen, a unique oral α-keratin, has flat cortical layers enclosing hollow horn tubules. Baleen grows continuously to replace erosive loss from feeding-related wear. This is essential for maintaining efficient filtration over a whale’s long life history. Baleen fragments are seen in stomach contents and feces. We focused on fin (Balaenoptera physal...

Male baleen whales have long been suspected to have annual cycles in testosterone, but due to difficulty in collecting endocrine samples, little direct evidence exists to confirm this hypothesis. Potential influences of stress or adrenal stress hormones (cortisol, corticosterone) on male reproduction have also been difficult to study. Baleen has re...

North Atlantic right whales (Eubalaena glacialis) are highly endangered and frequently exposed to a myriad of human activities and stressors in their industrialized habitat. Entanglements in fixed fishing gear represent a particularly pervasive and often drawn-out source of anthropogenic morbidity and mortality to the species. To better understand...

Recent studies have demonstrated that some hormones are present in baleen powder from bowhead (Balaena mysticetus) and North Atlantic right (Eubalaena glacialis) whales. To test the potential generalizability of this technique for studies of stress and reproduction in large whales, we sought to determine whether all major classes of steroid and thy...

Research into stress physiology of mysticete whales has been hampered by difficulty in obtaining repeated physiological samples from individuals over time. We investigated whether multi-year longitudinal records of glucocorticoids can be reconstructed from serial sampling along full-length baleen plates (representing ∼10 years of baleen growth), us...

B-cell lymphoma, a common morphologic variant of non-Hodgkin lymphoma, has been associated with persistent pollutants in humans, but this association is not well-characterized in top-level predators sharing marine resources with humans. We characterized and compared blubber contaminants and hormones of a pregnant harbor porpoise (Phocoena phocoena)...

SynopsisCalanus finmarchicus, like many other copepods in the family Calanidae, can enter into a facultative diapause during the last juvenile phase (fifth copepodid, C5) to enable survival during unfavorable periods. Diapause is essential to the persistence of Calanus populations and profoundly impacts energy flow within oceanic ecosystems, yet re...

Reproduction of mysticete whales is difficult to monitor, and basic parameters, such as pregnancy rate and inter-calving interval, remain unknown for many populations. We hypothesized that baleen plates (keratinous strips that grow downward from the palate of mysticete whales) might record previous pregnancies, in the form of high-progesterone regi...

Here we highlight some of the opportunities associated with combining advanced sample preparation techniques with state-of-the-art chemical analysis techniques. This article considers the unique combination of selective pressurized liquid extraction (SPLE) with gas chromatography (GC) coupled with mass spectrometry (MS) and ultrahigh-pressure liqui...

Due to the seriously endangered status of North Pacific right whales Eubalaena japonica, an improved understanding of the environmental factors that influence the species' distribution and occurrence is needed to better assess the effects of climate change and industrial activities on the population. Associations among right whales, zooplankton, an...

ABSTRACT: Diel vertical migration (DVM) by herbivorous copepods likely has a profound effect on the behavior and ecology of copepod predators. We characterized the DVM behavior of late-stage Calanus finmarchicus in the southwestern Gulf of Maine during the spring seasons of 2005 to 2007, and investigated the influence of this behavior on the occurr...

Differentiating kin from nonkin enables organisms of many species to allocate resources or altruistic behaviour towards related conspecifics and to avoid mating with close relatives. Kin recognition mechanisms can vary among species and may reflect the social environment. Learned familiarity with nest or shoalmates may serve as a good indication th...

Long-term stable isotope records derived from marine mammals present a unique retrospective glimpse at historic conditions, as they record of the flow and sources of nutrients from the food webs in which an animal feeds. These isotope records also provide a baseline from which to judge recent changes in the environment, and the subsequent impacts o...

A number of large cetacean species are seriously injured and killed by entanglement in fishing gear used in the waters off the eastern United States and Canada. Entanglement most frequently involves rope or lines wrapped around the head, the flippers, body, in the mouth, around the tail flukes or any combination of the aforementioned body parts. Co...