Dear colleagues, We are pleased to share with you our new publication on Easter North Atlantic Kogidae population genetics:
Davide Maggioni, Graziella Pupillo, Alessia Rota, Fausto Ramazzotti, Vidal Martín, Francesca Fusar Poli, Charlotte Dumortier, Paula Méndez-Fernandez, Andreia Torres-Pereira, Sara Sá, Mariel T. I. ten Doeschate, Andrew C. Brownlow, Pablo Covelo, Alfredo López, Andrea Galimberti, Elena Valsecchi. 2026. North-Eastern Atlantic strandings validate genetic patterns in pygmy and dwarf sperm whales. Marine Mammal Science 42, no.3: e70230. https://doi.org/10.1111/mms.70230 Abstract Pygmy (*Kogia breviceps*) and dwarf (*Kogia sima*) sperm whales are among the least studied cetaceans due to their elusive behavior and low detectability at sea. Molecular approaches are therefore essential to clarify their taxonomy, population structure, and conservation status. We present new mitochondrial DNA data from stranded *K. breviceps* and *K. sima* specimens collected across the eastern North Atlantic, a region previously not represented in genetic studies. We analyzed fragments of the mitochondrial cytochrome *b* gene and control region from 56 individuals and integrated these data with publicly available sequences to place regional diversity within a global phylogeographic framework. Population genetics, phylogenetics, and haplotype network analyses showed a weak or absent population structure in *K. breviceps* across its range, whereas *K. sima* was consistently separated into Atlantic–Mediterranean and Indo-Pacific lineages, characterized by high genetic divergence. Eastern North Atlantic samples clustered within the Atlantic lineage and showed moderate genetic diversity, with a few locality-specific haplotypes identified. Overall, our results expand the genetic baseline for Kogiidae species in the eastern North Atlantic and support previous evidence of cryptic diversity within *K. sima*. Despite observational limitations, the relatively high genetic diversity observed in the two species provides cautiously optimistic indications of population health in this elusive cetacean family. The article is Open Access and is available at the following link: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/mms.70230 Best regards, Elena Valsecchi
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