Growth and economic efficiency of Trachinotus blochii reared at different stocking densities in earthen ponds

Abstract

Over 60 % of all known cetacean species have been recorded in southern African waters. However, many of these are rarely seen and knowledge of their basic ecology is lacking, with most data acquired from stranded specimens. Odontocetes (toothed whales) that typically occur in offshore environments are particularly data-sparse and include dwarf and pygmy sperm whales, beaked whales, and five other species referred to as ‘blackfish’. The pygmy killer whale (Feresa attenuata) is one of the rare and data-poor ‘blackfish’ species, with the last confirmed at-sea sighting in South African waters recorded in 1969. Several individuals have subsequently stranded along the South African coastline providing valuable opportunities to investigate their biology. Here, both live (2021–2025) and stranded (1957–2021) records of pygmy killer whales in South African waters are updated, with a particular focus on the opportunistic sightings in shallow waters of the iSimangaliso Marine Protected Area on the northern KwaZulu-Natal coast.