30 July 2015

Wreckfish under our inflatable



A juvenile wreckfish hides under our inflatable.

Wreckfish Polyprion americanus often congregate below floating objects when young, whereas adults live on the bottom and prefer to inhabit caves and shipwrecks. They can grow up to about 2 m and weigh 100 kg.

Also see THIS POST.

(Photos from video by S. Bonizzoni, Gulf of Corinth, Greece)


29 July 2015

Not a shark



An adult bottlenose dolphin surfacing off Eratini.

(Photo by S. Bonizzoni, Gulf of Corinth, Greece)

28 July 2015

Fast travelling



An excited group of striped dolphins travels fast off the northern coast of the Peloponnese.

(Photos by S. Bonizzoni, Gulf of Corinth, Greece)

27 July 2015

Late evening jump



A young bottlenose dolphin jumps in the late evening light.

(Photo by G. Bearzi, Gulf of Corinth, Greece)

After 9 PM



Observing bottlenose dolphins after 9 PM, when individual photo-identification becomes a real challenge.

(Photos by G. Bearzi, Gulf of Corinth, Greece)

26 July 2015

When life is good 2



Laura and Benedetta observing a striped dolphin from our small fibreglass boat.  

(Photo by G. Bearzi, Gulf of Corinth, Greece)

When life is good 1



(Photo by S. Bonizzoni)

25 July 2015

At sea with our friends



At sea with striped dolphins and our dear friends: does it get any better?

(Photos by G. Bearzi and S. Bonizzoni)

Basilico 2



We found that Basilico nicely complements our dolphin research team.

(Photos by G. Bearzi)

24 July 2015

23 July 2015

Cordenons friends



With our good old friends, school teachers from Cordenons, Italy, who came to visit us together with their sons.

(Photos by G. Bearzi and M. Rossi)

At the sky



Striped dolphin aiming at the sky.

(Photo by S. Bonizzoni, Gulf of Corinth, Greece)

22 July 2015

Ampelos view 2



View from the island of Ampelos, in the Bay of Antikyra, Gulf of Corinth, Greece.

(Photo by S. Bonizzoni)

21 July 2015

Front view



Front view of a striped dolphin's leap.

(Photo by S. Bonizzoni, Gulf of Corinth, Greece)

20 July 2015

Lavinia back to Venice



Our dear Lavinia left today, after almost three months spent studying dolphins in the Gulf of Corinth. She will be back in a month, and then until the end of the research season.

(Photo by S. Bonizzoni)

Breathing



(Photo by S. Bonizzoni, Gulf of Corinth, Greece)

On our console



Items on our boat's console.

(Photos by S. Bonizzoni and M. Ferreira Da Silveira)

19 July 2015

Encounter with longline fishermen



An encounter with longline fishermen Iannis and Dimitris in the middle of the Gulf of Corinth. They caught a bluefin tuna.

(Photos by L. Eddy and S. Bonizzoni)

18 July 2015

Monk seal in the Gulf of Corinth 2



This Mediterranean monk seal Monachus monachus was encountered yesterday in the Bay of Itea. This individual, identified through photos of its pigmentation pattern, was observed in the same general area in June and July 2014.

Also see THIS POST.

(Photos by S. Bonizzoni, Gulf of Corinth, Greece)

Sidelong look



(Photo by S. Bonizzoni, Gulf of Corinth, Greece)

Lecturing at the field station



Giovanni at the Galaxidi field station, making a presentation on how the perception of whales and dolphins has been shifting through time, and the relevant implications for conservation.

(Photos by S. Bonizzoni)

17 July 2015

16 July 2015

Mixed-species group



Homo sapiens and Stenella coeruleoalba.

(Photo by S. Bonizzoni, Gulf of Corinth, Greece)

Seaside sofa



Lavinia, Ursula and Christof on a seaside sofa.

(Photo by S. Bonizzoni)

15 July 2015

Bottlenose out



A bottlenose dolphin jumps off the northern coast of the Gulf of Corinth, Greece.

(Photo by S. Bonizzoni)

Group at sea



Silvia and Lavinia with our research volunteers.

(Photos by L. Eddy and S. Bonizzoni)

14 July 2015

With dolphins



(Photo by L. Eddy, Gulf of Corinth, Greece)

Awe



A striped dolphin surfaces just in front of our inflatable.

(Photos by L. Eddy, Gulf of Corinth, Greece)

13 July 2015

Free and unaware



Unaware of the crisis and the tremors of Europe as a unity and solidarity project, these striped dolphins enjoy their freedom in the Greek and European blue waters of the Gulf of Corinth.

(Photo by S. Bonizzoni)

12 July 2015

Mariana, Maria Bonita and LampiĆ£o



Lovely Mariana (right in the photo), whose smile has been cheering us up for six weeks, is flying back to her homeland Brazil. Maria Bonita and LampiĆ£o, on our fridge, are eagerly waiting for her return next year.

(Photo by G. Bearzi)

Perfect fins



(Photo by S. Bonizzoni, Gulf of Corinth, Greece)

11 July 2015

Perfect setting



Striped dolphin surfacing sequence. A perfect setting for individual photo-identification.

(Photos by S. Bonizzoni, Gulf of Corinth, Greece)

Sounds of the Gulf



Research volunteers Rita Borner and Roman Bolli, while listening to striped dolphin vocalizations.

(Photos by M. Ferreira Da Silveira, Gulf of Corinth, Greece)

09 July 2015

Xiphias and Pennella



This juvenile swordfish Xiphias gladius was infested with ectoparasites Pennella sp. These copepods are not uncommon on large fish as well as on whales and dolphins. This sworfish performed several breaches, possibly an attempt of getting rid of ectoparasites that, unfortunately, don't detach so easily

(Photo by S. Bonizzoni, Gulf of Corinth, Greece)

In the field



Silvia in action on the inflatable.

(Photo by M. Ferreira Da Silveira)

08 July 2015

Energy surplus



This energetic female striped dolphin performed about a dozen consecutive breaches.

(Photo by S. Bonizzoni, Gulf of Corinth, Greece)

Close encounter



OceanCare intern Roman Bolli sets his GoPro camera as a striped dolphin jumps just a few centimeters from our inflatable.

(Photo by S. Bonizzoni, Gulf of Corinth, Greece)

07 July 2015

Field station briefing



Reviewing navigation effort and dolphin movements at the Galaxidi field station.

(Photos by G. Bearzi)

Four



Four bottlenose dolphins off the northwestern coast of the Gulf of Corinth, Greece.

(Photo by S. Bonizzoni)

06 July 2015

Greece, we stand by you

Dolphin smile



The famous ironic smile of a bottlenose dolphin. As noted by Lori Marino, such smile is not a smile at all but an anatomical illusion arising from the configuration of their jaws, making people believe that the animals are always content ("Sorry: Dolphins Aren’t Smiling", Reader's Digest Magazine February 2014). Yet, this particular young animal not only looked content, but he probably was: free, undisturbed, and surrounded by group members and friends.

(Photo by S. Bonizzoni, Gulf of Corinth, Greece)

After a sighting



Silvia, Giovanni, Mariana and Lavinia after a bottlenose dolphin sighting.

(Photos by L. Eddy and M. Ferreira Da Silveira)

05 July 2015

Mobula mobular in the Gulf of Corinth



This individual, most likely a giant devil ray Mobula mobular, was observed on 3 July in the Gulf of Corinth, Greece. Its estimated "wingspan" was 2 m. A second individual was spotted in the same area. It is our first observation of this species in the Gulf since systematic surveys started in 2009.

The photos show the tip of one of the ray's pectoral fins.

The Mediterranean population of the giant devil ray is classified as Endangered in the IUCN Red List.

(Photos by S. Bonizzoni)


04 July 2015

Unmarked



A striped dolphin with a somewhat anomalous pigmentation and no dorsal fin markings.

(Photo by S. Bonizzoni, Gulf of Corinth, Greece)

03 July 2015

Waterpainting



Striped dolphin painting with water.

(Photo by S. Bonizzoni, Gulf of Corinth, Greece)

02 July 2015