31 October 2014

Striped dolphin adult



A mature individual.

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

October sunrise



October sunrise in the Southern Evoikos Gulf.

(Photo by G. Bearzi)

30 October 2014

Keel art



Layers of old paint on an abandoned wooden boat in Nea Styra, Greece.

(Photo by G. Bearzi)

Early morning breach



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

29 October 2014

Dolphin Biology People: Lavinia



Lavinia left Galaxidi yesterday after spending about two months with us, researching dolphins and fisheries in the Gulf of Corinth and in the Southern Evoikos Gulf. She has become an excellent team member and we look forward to working together again in 2015. We are grateful for all the hard work she has done, and for the fun time we spent together.

Lavinia graduated in Veterinary Medicine at the University of Padua, Italy. During her studies she participated in an exchange program with Texas A&M University, the Veterinary International Leadership Program. In 2010 she completed a summer internship at the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), an environmental advocacy group in Washington DC, USA. In 2013 she participated in a course for veterinarians centered around the management and conservation of cetaceans and sea turtles in the Adriatic Sea, as well as in a research-oriented course in marine mammal medicine. She also volunteered in boat-based surveys conducted between Civitavecchia (Italy) and Barcelona (Spain) to assess cetacean occurrence. Lavinia is now heading to Pieterburen, Netherlands, where she will work at the Seal Rehabilitation and Research Centre.

 (Photo by F. Böller, Hosios Loukas, Greece)

27 October 2014

Two striped dolphins



Two striped dolphins surfacing at unison.

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

Artisanal fishing boat, detail



(Photo by G. Bearzi, Southern Evoikos Gulf, Greece)

26 October 2014

Mother and calf



A striped dolphin calf surfaces in sync with its presumed mother.

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

24 October 2014

Friendly fisherman



An artisanal fisherman encountered at sea off Boufalo, Southern Evoikos Gulf.

(Photo by S. Bonizzoni)

22 October 2014

Dolphin lesson in Kirra



This morning Silvia lectured to school children in Kirra, near Itea, Greece. After the lecture we distributed booklets "Our Friends the Dolphins" in Greek, printed thanks to OceanCare, to about 120 children.

We are grateful to the school director Iraklis Salagiannis for having invited us, and to all the teachers who helped.

(Photos by G. Bearzi)

Great egrets on fish farm




A flock of great egrets (Ardea alba) on a finfish farm in the Southern Evoikos Gulf, Greece.

(Photo by S. Bonizzoni)

21 October 2014

Mother and calf



A striped dolphin and her calf swim near the bow of our inflatable.

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

20 October 2014

Blows



Bottlenose dolphins "blowing".

(Photo by S. Bonizzoni, Southern Evoikos Gulf, Greece)

Fish farm gulls



Gulls trying to catch small fish near aquaculture cages.

(Photo by S. Bonizzoni, Southern Evoikos Gulf, Greece)

19 October 2014

Learning to feed... opportunistically



A bottlenose dolphin mother shows to her calf how to catch prey around finfish aquaculture facilties.

(Photo by S. Bonizzoni, Southern Evoikos Gulf, Greece)

On the inflatable



Lavinia and Silvia following bottlenose dolphins from the inflatable in the Southern Evoikos Gulf, Greece.

(Photo by G. Bearzi)

18 October 2014

Artisanal fishing in the morning



Artisanal fishermen hauling their nets in the morning light.

(Photo by S. Bonizzoni, Southern Evoikos Gulf, Greece)

Interviewing artisanal fishermen



Silvia interviewing an artisanal fisherman in Agii Apostoli.

(Photo by G. Bearzi, Southern Evoikos Gulf, Greece)

17 October 2014

Looking for prey



Three bottlenose dolphins looking for prey off the southern coast of the Southern Evoikos Gulf, Greece.

(Photo by S. Bonizzoni)