Cox et a I.: Documenting bycatch of Phocoena phocoena from stranded carcasses 
731 
porpoises were observed in all three 
states between the months of Feb- 
ruary and May; most (n = 13) en- 
tangled porpoises were found on the 
beaches of Virginia (Fig. 2; Table 1) 
in March and April 1994 (Table 2). 
Twelve entangled animals were 
male; 13 were female. We were able 
to positively identify four cases of 
entanglement in monofilament gill 
nets. 
Nine of the 25 entangled porpoises 
were fresh (code 2); 14 were moder- 
ately decomposed (code 3); two were 
very decomposed (code 4). The pro- 
portion of code-2 and code-3 por- 
poises in the sample of entangled 
porpoises was not significantly dif- 
ferent from that of nonentangled 
animals (% 2 =0.82, df=l, P=0.36). We 
were able to assess evidence of en- 
tanglement for 93% (rc=13) of the 
code-2 animals; 41% (n=24) of the 
code-3 animals; and 9% (n- 3) of the 
code-4 animals. Fifteen of the en- 
tangled animals were robust, and six 
were emaciated; four were too de- 
composed to allow us to determine 
body condition. The proportion of 
robust animals in the entangled 
sample was significantly greater 
than that in the nonentangled 
sample (G adj = 23.51, df=l, P<0.001). 
None of the entangled animals dis- 
played any unusual gross signs of 
pathology. 
The mean total length of en- 
tangled animals was 116 ±5 cm 
(range: 112-128 cm; Fig. 4). The 
mean total length of entangled por- 
poises was not significantly different from that of 
nonentangled animals (116 ±7 cm; £=0.396, df=36, 
P=0.69). The mean total length of the entangled 
stranded animals was significantly less than that of 
porpoises killed at sea and examined by observers 
(131 ±14 cm; £=2.97, df=9, P=0.015). 
Discussion 
Here we have documented fisheries mortality in 
stranded harbor porpoises killed in coastal gill net 
fisheries in the Mid-Atlantic between 1994 and 1996. 
However, these deaths represent only an unknown 
proportion of the total number of porpoises killed in 
Figure 3 
Map of the Mid-Atlantic coast showing stranding locations of harbor porpoises, 
Phocoena phocoena , between 1994 and 1996. Open triangle = SI code 2; open 
square = SI code 3; closed circle = SI code 4. 
Table 3 
Summary of Smithsonian Institution codes to define con- 
dition of harbor porpoises (Phocoena phocoena) stranded 
along the Mid-Atlantic coast by state. One animal stranded 
in Virginia was in code-5 condition. Code 1 = alive; code 2 = 
dead but fresh; code 3 = moderately decomposed; code 4 = 
severely decomposed; code 5 = only skeletal remains noted. 
SI Code 
NC 
VA 
MD 
Total 
2 
0 
10 
4 
14 
3 
14 
37 
7 
58 
4 
9 
22 
3 
34 
Total 
23 
69 
14 
106 
nearshore fisheries along the Mid-Atlantic. Many 
carcasses were too decomposed to determine cause 
