First data on cetacean strandings and in situ observations along the Algerian coast

Data on cetaceans within the pelagic ecosystem remains scarce in the Algerian basin. This is linked to a lack of investigations stemming from the difficulty of quantitative population evaluation through oceanographic surveys and/or strandings statistics. In this context, we considered that it is appropriate to focus on data acquisition from offshore observations as well as setting up a network for monitoring strandings on sites scattered along the Algerian coast. During 10 oceanographic surveys conducted in two Algerian coasts sectors (eastern and central) we observed a total of 245 delphinids corresponding to 8 species that had an irregular distribution. We also identified 83 individuals belonging to five species that stranded between 2007 and 2017.