BDRI's Background

So... what is she doing in Italy?

I am interning at the BDRI, in Sardinia. If you have Google Earth and would like to see the town, coastline, and even the local fisheries' pens, plug in these coordinates: 40°59' 30.00'' N, 9°37'00.00'' E. That is in the middle of the screen shot, shown below.

To get a sense of what the BDRI does, you can visit the website (www.thebdri.com) or read on here. The following paragraphs are direct excerpts from the above website, which is managed by the BDRI's researchers including Chief Biologist & Director Mr. Díaz López.

"The Bottlenose Dolphin Research Institute (BDRI) is a small private international center for research, education, and training in bottlenose dolphins ecology and behaviour.

"BDRI members seek to contribute to the understanding and conservation of dolphins, expand the public's knowledge and concern for our marine environment, and add to the knowledge base of bottlenose dolphins through the sharing of collected field data. One of the core aims of the BDRI is to find out more about the bottlenose dolphins through different non-invasive research techniques.

"Using study techniques that neither harm nor seriously disturb the animals, BDRI's projects aims to study the surface and acoustic behaviour of Mediterranean bottlenose dolphins and the potential effects of human activities (fisheries, aquaculture and tourism) in their behaviour. This projects will compare social and foraging strategies as adapted to habitat with land mammals that also have the flexibility to readily adapt to a variety of different ecologies, such as the great ape. This type of study, examining which animals change habitats and which do not, and looking at categories such as age, sex and relatedness, allows for an exploration of behavioural differences among members of one overall society or culture."

Thank you for your interest! I will arrive at the field station on Feb 2, so be sure to check back in after that for my first on-site update!