First record of Clymene dolphin (Stenella clymene Gray, 1846) in European waters

83 On May 17, 2016 the carcasses of two stranded dolphins in a good condition were found on the beach of Rodiles near the town of Villaviciosa (Asturias, Spain: 43 32’ N; 5 22’ W). The animals did not exhibit any injuries or marks of having been entangled in fishing tackle, nor signs associated with a violent death, as is so often in other cases of cetaceans stranded in the Cantabrian seashore. It should be remarked that one month before the beaching (i.e. April 17, 2016), around 8 pm and a few meters away from the beach-line, a pod of no less than three dolphins (some reporters believe up to eight animals) was filmed that were spinning and synchronically jumping out of the water. This behaviour was considered unusual for the species of dolphins known to inhabit these waters but matches the repertoire of spinner dolphins, including Clymene dolphin (Perrin et al. 1981). On the day they were found, both specimens were collected by personnel of the Dirección General de Pesca Marítima and the Guardería de Medio Natural of the Consejería de Desarrollo Rural y Recursos Naturales from the Principado de Asturias and frozen at the Centro de Experimentación Pesquera. A preliminary inspection based on external features identified them as Stenella clymene Gray, 1846.