Dolphin & Whale Conservation Volunteer Programme, Italy
Organisation: WorkingAbroad Projects
Country: Italy

Participants will be directly involved in field activities, helping the researchers to collect cetacean data and assist them in preliminary analyses of digital photos and acoustic recordings, while learning basics in sailing. The schedule of a research cruise depends very much on weather conditions. Surveys are conducted whenever the sea state and wind forecasts are favourable for data collection. Participants are full members of the crew, and they will be assigned a number of duties. These include sighting shifts (looking for cetaceans), computer shifts (data entry and hydrophone listening), navigation shifts (checking the boat course and velocity), cooking and boat-keeping shifts (participants as well as staff members will be in charge of preparing meals and cleaning-up, keeping the boat tidy and ready to sail). Placements are available for one to several weeks from May to October.