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Article History

Received: 5 December 2023

Revised: 9 May 2024

Accepted: 24 May 2024

First Online: 8 November 2024

ETHICS APPROVAL AND CONSENT TO PARTICIPATE

: This research is not covered by any regulation, and formal ethical approval is not required for two reasons. First, killer whales were legally caught for sale to marine mammal parks, not to conduct experiments (on their blood analytes). The numbers of permissions for catch provided by the Federal Agency for Fishery (Russia) are as follows: 2720180412692702 and 2720180412322702 for OOO Afalina; 2720180412292702 for OOO Belyy Kit; 2720180412332702 and 2720180412662702 for OOO Okeanarium DV; and 2720180412682702 and 2720180412672702 for OOO Sochinskiy del’finariy. The animals were to undergo the adaptation to captivity in sea pens. All that time the killer whales were monitored by veterinarians, who provided the animals with due care and attention. The blood sampling was a routine part of normal health exams. Second, we analyzed this blood sample set retrospectively. Since blood samples are not animals, the Bioethics Committee of the Severtsov Institute of Ecology and Evolution, Russian Academy of Sciences, (or any other) has no subject for approval. We appeal to the precedent with an article about analysis of blood samples from killer whales at the SeaWorld theme park [].

: The authors of this work declare that they have no conflicts of interest.