Summary of recorded cetacean strandings in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands

Documented strandings in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands over the past 17 years are reviewed with recorded autopsy information provided. Most of the strandings occurred on the island of Saipan, although two whales were noted to have stranded during this period on Tinian, one identified as Balaenoptera edeni, the Byrdes whale, while the other was not identified. The planned expansion of military activities in the Marianas Archipelago, particularly the use of sonar and the potential impact on cetaceans, is noted.