Dear colleagues, I would like to inform you that the following paper was recently published: Kershaw F., Leslie MS., Collins T., Mansur RM., Smith BD., Minton G., Baldwin R., LeDuc RG., Anderson RC., Brownell Jr. RL., & Rosenbaum HC. 2013. Population differentiation of 2 forms of Bryde's whales in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. Journal of Heredity, Advanced Access: 30 September 2013. ABSTRACT Accurate identification of units for conservation is particularly challenging for marine species as obvious barriers to gene flow are generally lacking. Bryde's whales (*Balaenoptera spp.*) are subject to multiple human-mediated stressors, including fisheries bycatch, ship strikes, and scientific whaling by Japan. For effective management, a clear understanding of how populations of each Bryde's whales species/subspecies are genetically structured across their range is required. We conducted a population-level analysis of mtDNA control region sequences with 56 new samples from Oman, Maldives, and Bangladesh, plus published sequences from off Java and the Northwest Pacific. Nine diagnostic characters in the mitochondrial control region and a maximum parsimony phylogenetic analysis identified 2 genetically recognized subspecies of Bryde's whale: the larger, offshore form, *Balaenoptera edeni brydei*, and the smaller, coastal form, *Balaenoptera edeni edeni. *Genetic diversity and differentiation indices, combined with a reconstructed maximum parsimony haplotype network, indicate strong differences in the genetic diversity and population structure within each subspecies. Discrete population units are identified for *B. e. brydei * in the Maldives, Java, and the Northwest Pacific, and for *B. e. edeni* between the Northern Indian Ocean (Oman and Bangladesh) and the coastal waters of Japan. Abstract link: * http://jhered.oxfordjournals.org.ezproxy.cul.columbia.edu/content/early/2013... * For pdf requests or additional information please contact: * flk2107@columbia.edu* and *hrosenbaum@wcs.org* Many thanks! ***************************************************************************** *Francine Kershaw, Faculty Fellow / Doctoral Candidate* Columbia University Department of Ecology, Evolution & Environmental Biology (E3B) 1014 Schermerhorn Ext., 1200 Amsterdam Avenue, New York, NY 10027 T: 612-280-8215 E: flk2107@columbia.edu S: francine.kershaw ****************************************************************************