vestibular dysfunction." They also found no 

 parasitic infiltration of the eighth cranial nerves 

 or the vestibular cochlear nuclei. 



We examined the reproductive organs from the 

 six fresh carcasses. We judged the male to be sexu- 

 ally mature on the basis of body length (520 cm), 

 total testis weight (8,200 g) and histological dem- 

 onstration of spermatogenesis. We considered 

 three of the females (body lengths 297, 338, 358 

 cm) sexually immature. Neither corpora lutea nor 

 corpora albicantia were found in the ovaries (Har- 

 rison^^) and ovary weight was low (13.3, 14.0, and 

 15.1 g, respectively) compared with the other two 

 females. One female (475 cm) had three corpora 

 albicantia in the left ovary and five to six corpora 

 albicantia in the right ovary (Harrison see foot- 

 note 13). Ovary weight was 46.8 g. We also consid- 

 ered the 440 cm female from Redfish Pass to be 

 sexually mature based on ovary weight (65 g) and 

 the presence of three corpora albicantia in the left 

 ovary and six in the right. 



Few data are available on sexual maturity and 

 reproduction in P. crassidens. Comrie and Adams 

 (1938) examined four 425-450 cm female speci- 

 mens of P. crassidens that were all sexually ma- 

 ture. Norman and Fraser (1948) and Purves and 

 Pilleri (1978) stated that sexual maturity was 

 reached in both sexes at 366-427 cm ( 12-14 ft) long. 

 Using Norman and Fraser's length range, three 

 females from the Tortugas stranding would be 

 considered immature with the lower limit and 

 nine with the upper limit, and three males would 

 be considered immature with the upper limit. 



Hematology 



We took blood from vessels in the flukes, flip- 

 pers, or dorsal fins. Samples for cell counts and 

 hemoglobin determinations were collected in an- 

 ticoagulant tubes. We collected sera from separate 

 tubes after the blood had clotted, and stored it 

 frozen until it was analyzed. Cell counts were done 

 with a Coulter Model D-2 (Coulter Electronics, 

 Hialeah, Fla.). Serum chemistry analyses were 

 done with a Clinicard Model 368 (Harleco Div. 

 American Hospital Supply Co., Gibbstown, N.J.). 

 This is one of the few (if not the only) times when 

 blood samples have been collected from an entire 

 herd of stranded cetaceans. The data from the 30 

 Loggerhead Key animals are similar to 



'^Richard J. Harrison, Anatomy School, Cambridge Univer- 

 sity, Cambridge, Engl., pers. commun. 1976. 



174 



hematologic values for other small cetaceans (Ta- 

 ble 1; Ridgway et al. 1970; Ridgway 1972). Brown 

 et al. (1966) gave some data on blood cell counts 

 from the one false killer whale held at Marineland 

 of the Pacific for 7 yr. Those values are roughly 

 similar to those presented here, but red cell counts 

 were higher (4.5-5.2 x 10^/mm^). The blood values 

 for our four female false killer whales (Table 1) 

 vary somewhat from the Loggerhead Key group 

 and undoubtedly reflect their deteriorating condi- 

 tion. Notable are leucocytosis with an eosinophilia 

 in both groups (Table 1). Serum calcium levels 

 were elevated when compared with other odonto- 

 cetes. Lactic acid dehydrogenase levels were 

 slightly elevated. All of the above conditions can 

 be indicative of heat stress, parasitism, 

 pneumonia, etc. in other odontocetes, and we as- 

 sume that P. crassidens responds similarly. Al- 

 kaline phosphatase levels were low, indicating 

 depletion of reserves. This depletion generally 

 signals impending death in other odontocetes. 

 Blood urea nitrogen and glucose levels were 

 higher in the captives than in the Loggerhead Key 

 animals and could reflect the fact that captives 

 were feeding while the other group had probably 

 not fed for several days. White blood cell counts 

 and lactic acid dehydrogenase levels were the only 

 parameters in which males and females differed 

 significantly (f-test, 0.01 level). 



Behavior in Captivity 



The four live false killer whales transported to 

 Sea World appeared to adapt to captivity with 

 relative ease. When first put into their pool, they 

 began to swim rapidly around the pool as a group, 

 swimming in a clockwise direction with the 

 largest animal (475 cm), apparently leading the 

 group. They often took food from the hand and 

 were not easily disturbed by routine handling for 

 physical examinations. Within 24 h after their 

 arrival, the largest and the smallest whales were 

 separated from the other two and placed in an 

 adjacent pool. The overall swimming patterns of 

 all the animals remained the same after the sep- 

 aration. However, their swimming pace slowed 

 considerably. The general behavior and apparent 

 rapid adaptation to captivity was quite similar to 

 that observed in a captive false killer whale (ani- 

 mal collected at sea) held at Marineland of the 

 Pacific (Brown et al. 1966). 



All of the animals began feeding on mackerel 

 and herring immediately upon arrival. The 338 



