The panda dolphin

The Commerson’s dolphin (Cephalorhynchus commersonii) aka skunk dolphin aka panda dolphin is best known for its distinctive, black and white body that consists of black fins, flippers and head, with white covering all other regions. These dolphins are small in size and found largely across the southwest Atlantic Ocean, with some populations also seen in the Indian Ocean. Other than their vastly different geographic habitats, Commerson’s dolphins found in the Indian Ocean also differ physically from their Atlantic counterparts. The dolphins seen in the Indian Ocean tend to have more grey patterns along their body and are also usually larger in size. [1]

Given their small size, these dolphins are extremely agile and register swimming speeds as fast as 11 to 13 kmph, often seeing riding waves surrounding high-speed boats. They are friendly to other relatives and like to associate with the Peale’s dolphin (Lagenorhynchus australis) when performing spectacular acrobats and playful swimming routines!

Photograph by GP0STRFPH, Greenpeace UK [CC BY 2.0], via flickr.com

Typically, Commerson’s dolphins exist in groups of 2-3 individuals but are also known to travel and socialize in groups as big as 100 individuals. Although their life spans in the wild average at around 10 years of age, one captive individual at SeaWorld (San Diego) lived for a record-breaking 25.8 years! Previously, these dolphins were often intentionally captured by fishermen for use as bait, but the practice has since been outlawed, allowing populations level to rise again. Yet, accidental entanglement in fishing nets continues to be a threat to these dolphins. [2]

Today we release a chromosome-length assembly for the Commerson’s dolphin species, our seventh assembly in the Delphinidae (oceanic dolphins) family (see our assemblies page here). This is a de novo assembly with contig N50 = 92Kb and scaffold N50 = 104Mb. See Dudchenko et. al, 2018 for details on the protocol. We thank SeaWorld for their help with the sample!

It takes one to snow one

From the Himalayas to the southern Siberian mountain range, the snow leopard (Panthera uncia) can be found on the prowl for its next meal. Snow leopards are no strangers to harsh terrains, travelling anywhere from 48 to 80 square miles [1]. These powerful predators can jump up to 50ft and can take down prey three times its own size [2]!

Young snow leopard by Tambako The Jaguar, [CC BY-ND 2.0], via flickr.com

To survive and blend in with snowy, mountainous environments, snow leopards have large paws that act as natural snowshoes and thick fur coats to protect them from harsh conditions. Their light-colored coats have dark rosette patterns that are unique to each individual [3]. Unfortunately, their beautiful coats are sought after by poachers. The IUCN lists the snow leopard as vulnerable, with their wild population in decline. Other threats to snow leopard populations include habitat loss and climate change.

Today, we share the chromosome-length assembly for the snow leopard, thanks to Kiara from the Oklahoma City Zoo. Before she passed in late 2017, she provided the sample for this genome assembly allowing for her genome to live on indefinitely. We thank the Oklahoma City Zoo staff and especially Candice Rennels and Jennifer D'Agostino for their help with this sample!

This is a $1K genome assembly with contig N50 = 65 Kb and scaffold N50 = 141 Mb. See Dudchenko et al., 2018 for procedure details. This is the fifth species in the DNA Zoo collection from the Pantherinae subfamily of cats, the others being the tiger, jaguar, leopard, and the clouded leopard. Stay tuned for more!

Back in Black

The black rhinoceros (Diceros bicornis) is the smaller of the two African rhinoceros species, but still stands just shy of 6ft tall at the shoulders. These mammals are not only massive, but quite fast. Weighing in at up to 1.5 tons, they can still reach a top speed of 34 mph while running on just their toes [1]!

As herbivores, the rhino intakes around 120 pounds of foliage, and does so by browsing on woody plants and shrubs [2]. They’re specially equipped with a notably pointed upper lip that’s used to pull the leaves off the branches and into their mouths.

The black rhinoceros sports two large horns on its head, in contrast to the white rhinoceros which bares only a single horn. In the wild these horns are used to ward off encroaching animals and defend territory. Large horns therefore are very desirable when searching for a mate.

"Black rhino" by Paul Albertella [CC BY 2.0], via flickr.com

Black rhino numbers once soared into the hundreds of thousands across sub-saharan Africa, but during the early 1990’s these numbers dwindled down to as low as 2,500 due to unregulated hunting and poaching [3]. This was an immense 98% drop in population. However, the numbers have been on the rise, with wild black rhinoceros population reaching more than 6,421 [4]. The IUCN lists these beautiful animals as critically endangered. Read more about these animals here.

Today, we release a chromosome-length genome assembly of the black rhinoceros. This is a $1K genome assembly with contig N50 = 87 Kb and scaffold N50 = 59 Mb. See Dudchenko et al., 2018 for details on the procedure. Thank you to SeaWorld for providing the sample for this assembly. This is the third rhinoceros in our collection, and completes the assembly of both African rhinoceros species, the other being the white rhinoceros (Ceratotherium simum). Additionally, we have previously shared the assembly of the Indian rhinoceros (Rhinoceros unicorns).