News
Here as a PDF for Printing
NEWSLETTERS
2023 – August
— The team returns to Ila do Fogo, Mozambique, to continue biodiversity surveys
— PhD student Erin-Ross March continues her data collection of humpback whale song
— Dr Frances Gulland (Commissioner at the U.S. Marine Mammal Commission) holds seminar on domoic acid exposure in seals
2023 – July
— Research continues on the endangered humpback dolphin and Starboard attacks a great white shark in Mossel Bay
— We host a workshop on sound production in mammals and birds with Prof David Reby and Prof Livio Favaro
2023 – June
— Sea Search investigates the intentional killing of 6 Cape Fur Seals
— Erin Ross-Marsh spoke about the unique impact that humpback whale song has had in human culture at the “Welcoming the Whales” festival in Durban
2023 – May
— Dr Tess Gridley heads to the USA to partake in the Consortium for Ocean Leadership discussions spanning ~10 years of marine acoustic research
— We hold a sound perception workshop with Prof Jakob Christensen-Dalsgaard and Prof Ole Næsbye Larsen about the evolution of hearing among animals
— Dr Simon Elwen and co-authors provide one of very few descriptions of cetacean (whales, dolphins and porpoises) diversity in the eastern South Atlantic Ocean in association with Green Peace
2023 – January-April
— Mathilde Martin defends her PhD on Cape Fur Seal acoustics excellently
— We give our new boat “Thula” a test run after renovations
— the SWORD (Signature Whistles for Occurrence, Recapture and Density) team collaborates with SeaTheFuture, promoting Southern African dolphin research
2022 – November and December
— Using D-tags (special recording devices) to allow us to look closer into humpback whale calling behaviour, depth profile, movements, and orientation within the water column 
— Celebrating women’s work in the natural world through the Nature Through Her Eyes festival
— Our surveys on Ilha do Fogo reveal the presence of over 190 different species
2022 – October
— Rostrum injuries raise concern for endangered Humpback Dolphins 
— Bioacoustics in the bush! We review the successes of the 3rd African Bioacoustics Community conference
— Coverage of a variety workshops led by the University of Southern Denmark (SDU) team in Kruger
2022 – September
— First aerial observation of killer whales hunting a great white shark
— Sea Search revisits Ilha do Fogo (Mozambique) to gain a better understanding of the biodiversity on and around the island
— Seal surveys continue under our investigation into seal health and mortality rates
2022 – August
— Vocal repertoires of Crabeater Seals reveals insights into individuality
— Southern hemisphere Humpback Whales are shown to share feeding grounds in the Atlantic Sector of the Southern Ocean
— Humpback dolphins make their TV debut on 50/50 documentary with Sasha Dines and Dr Gui Frainer in Mossel Bay
2022 – July
— Using machine learning and artificial intelligence for image recognition of species specific sounds – Dr Gui Frainer
— Humpback whales truly are a global species, Happywhale ID matches confirm
— Sea Search heads to the Kruger National Park for the biennial African Bioacoustics Community conference
2022 – June
— Predator vs. Predator – the migration of white sharks out of areas due to killer whales 
— Bad news for Sea Search – Road accident that derailed our boat and research
— SA Marine Science Symposium conference – great showing from Sea Search team
2022 – May
— Update on the seal die off – collecting and testing more samples
— Meet PhD student Erin Ross-Marsh researching southern African humpback whale song
— Bottlenose dolphin strands in Namibia
2022 – April
— Entanglements in Cape fur seals
— Organising the African Bioacoustics Community conference
— Meet PhD student Rachel Probert investigating bottlenose dolphins’ acoustic repertoire
2022 – March
— Meeting in the Kruger National Park for the African Bioacoustics Community conference 2022
— Meet PhD student Jack Fearey, acoustically monitoring the Namibian bottlenose population
— Exploratory research trip to Ilha do Fogo– ‘Fire Island’
2022 – February
— Marine washout and seal deaths in Namibia
— Meet PhD student Mathilde Martin – Cape fur seal vocalisations
— Fieldwork for acoustic research on dolphins in Mozambique
2022 – January
— Project update – Humpback whale super-group acoustics,
— Meet PhD student Sasha Dines, working on the endangered humpback dolphin
— The art of eavesdropping – how do we study marine mammal acoustics?
2021 – December
— Seismic Surveys-whats all the fuss about?
— Meet recently completed PhD student Bridget James – Namibian bottlenose genetic and social relationships
— African BioAcoustics Conference 2022!!
2021 – November
— South African seal die off, – whats going on?
— Super groups of humpback whales,
— Strange strandings in Namibia