It was exciting for researchers from the Sea Me Sardinia association to discover that they had already made acquaintance with a sperm whale spotted in recent days (during the monitoring expedition carried out in the Gulf of Asinara – Castelsardo Canyon), having photo-identified it 13 years ago in the Caprera canyon and named it Ganymede.
"An incredible testimony to the long migrations of this species in the Mediterranean," says researcher and marine biologist Luca Bittau, president of the association.
But the expedition's news doesn't end there. Researchers from Sea Me Sardinia have documented the presence of two species considered endangered in the Mediterranean: the dogfish and the Risso's dolphin. In the same area, a group of Risso's dolphins feeding was also observed and photo-identified: a sign of the area's high biological productivity.
During the expedition , several groups of striped dolphins were also spotted , pelagic dolphins encountered along much of the route. With these new sightings, the number of IUCN Endangered species reported in the area rises to three.
The expedition, Sea Me Sardinia reports, was carefully planned to avoid areas and days of long-predicted disturbance, allowing us to optimize available resources and bring home valuable scientific data on the area. During the voyage (75 nautical miles and 10 hours of continuous monitoring), the team also used a hydrophone, an instrument that allows them to listen to the sounds produced by cetaceans underwater. It was precisely thanks to these acoustic signals that we were able to acoustically monitor the presence of three sperm whales intent on hunting in the depths of the canyon. The resulting sightings of the sperm whales provided us with exciting moments and data on the species.
The Castelsardo Canyon continues to prove itself an extremely important area due to the presence within it of species of significant importance for the conservation of biodiversity and the integrity of Mediterranean marine ecosystems in the Pelagos Sanctuary.
