Relationship of dietary histamine to gastric ulcers in the dolphin.

Gastric ulcers and erosions were found in a captive bottle-nosed dolphin. The results of gross and histologic examination suggested peptic digestion as the cause of ulcerations in the 1st compartment. The underlying cause of the erosions in the 2nd compartment appeared to be based on vascular rather than peptic mechanisms. Among the many factors responsible for these lesions, histamine, found in inadequately preserved dietary fish, was implicated as the initial ulcerogenic stimulant.