Two consecutive days of observing dolphins ‘families’, with all age classes represented, has left me even more intrigued by the intricacies of social organisation among these intelligent animals. Flanked by what we presume to be their mothers, siblings and ‘babysitters’, Joan, myself and the team of volunteers enjoyed a couple of magic hours in the company of four cute newborns.
Always curious, the dolphins allowed us to approach them, making life easier for Joan, who in total took around 350 photographs for subsequent identification.
It seemed like the whole dolphin population living in the Amvrakikos Gulf came out to play during these days and we must have seen over 30 animals spread around the boat, plus many more in sight.
As a research assistant and Master student doing my thesis in collaboration with Tethys I’ve really managed to time my field work right. But, with an aim to count dolphins according to different group definitions, my first two days of data collection were hmmm... somewhat challenging... but wonderful for sure!!
Christina Geijer
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