Yotam and Yaly, ASI participants from Israel, describe their time working as part of the Song of the Whale team. Since we were little children, we dreamed about becoming a marine scientist; being offered the opportunity to come on board the R/V SOTW was a wonderful start to profile that dream. Before we even left the Cagliari port, on the way to get fuel for the boat, we spotted four bottlenose foraging between the boats.
After setting sail on the transect course towards Barcelona, we dropped the hydrophone in the water and a completely new world of underwater sound was revealed to us. Clicks and whistles of dolphins and whales were recorded, often way before we even spotted them visually. Different calls from each species allows us to recognize them acoustically. During two weeks on the SOTW, we encountered many of the marine mammals that are present in the Mediterranean sea. We saw bottlenose, common, striped, risso dolphins, fin whales that circled around the boat and showed great interest in the SOTW, a sperm whale breaching right out of the water and a family with a calf resting on the surface.
At the end of the day, we sit together on deck, having dinner, watching the sunset, talking with the wonderful, professional and scientific team of the SOTW about all we experienced, trying to learn more from their great knowledge, discussing about the latest scientific news and discoveries and getting ready for another night watch, recording the sounds from the deep.
In Barcelona, we were joined by Axia from Spain, Simon, Richard, Niall and Dr Nick (who is a medical doctor and new member of the SOTW team); we have spent another 7 days at sea covering almost 1000 nm of survey track. During this leg we have encountered a new species for me, pilot whales, and I have learned how to track these using the hydrophone.
During this time I have learned more about the world of whale research and the history of the Song of the Whale project from Simon and Richard whose involvement with the project dates back many years. The experience particularly with using passive acoustics has increased my resolve to include a strong acoustic component to my own PhD studies which will start soon. I have also learned much about seamanship and how to live onboard a small ship. I’ve enjoyed being part of a team and it’s been a great honor to meet all of the people onboard and I feel that I have made some good new friends.
In the next week on board the SOTW, who knows what we will find or see of the mysterious lives of the marine mammals in the Mediterranean Sea?
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