In May 2012, an adult, male bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops truncatus) was found stranded and dead on the Spanish Mediterranean coast. At necropsy, several areas of malacia were macroscopically observed in the periventricular parenchyma of the cerebrum. Microscopically a severe, diffuse, pyogranulomatous, and necrotizing meningoencephalomyelitis was associated with numerous intralesional highly pleomorphic fungal structures. After culture, the fungus, Cunninghamella bertholletiae, was identified by culture and PCR. To our knowledge, this is the first reported case of central nervous system mucormycosis due to Cunninghamella bertholletiae in a cetacean.
Keywords: Bottlenose dolphin; Cunninghamella bertholletiae; cetacean; meningoencephalitis; mucormycosis; mycosis.