Isolation of Clostridium tertium from the Striped Dolphin (Stenella coeruleoalba) in the Adriatic Sea

Bacteriological examination of an abscess found between blubber and musculature of a striped dolphin (Stenella coeruleoalba) found dead on 30th March 2002 in the Adriatic Sea, Croatia was performed and an aerotolerant, nontoxogenic Clostridium tertium was isolated in pure culture. National Collections of Industrial Food and Marine Bacteria (NCIMB Ltd.), Aberdeen, Scotland, UK, confirmed the results. The sequencing results showed it to be C. tertium with 100% similarity. The strain was named Clostridium tertium strain Zagreb, acceded to the culture collection and assigned the accession number NCIMB 13970. This is the first record of C. tertium in marine mammals.