New trophic link and potential feeding area of dwarf minke whale (Balaenoptera acutorostrata subsp.) in mid latitude waters of the southwestern Atlantic Ocean

The stomach content of a male, immature dwarf minke whale (Balaenoptera acutorostrata subsp.) stranded in September of 2008 in southern Brazil revealed a large consumption of the Argentine shortfin squid (Illex argentinus), probably in multiple feeding events. Stable isotopes signals from kidney and liver samples of the whale are consistent with values for this squid species, and prey size indicates consumption over spawning aggregations near the continental slope off southern Brazil. The present record adds a new prey species for dwarf minke whale and reinforces the hypothesis that some baleen whales could feed in middle latitudes of the Brazilian coast.