Marina Ibiza has received ‘Irifi’, a Tursiops vessel captained by Txema Brotons and Marga Cerdà, in charge of carrying out the projects for the conservation and protection of cetaceans in the Western Mediterranean in which this association works.

 

Tursiops is an NGO that seeks to contribute to the conservation and protection of cetaceans, as well as to promote the dissemination of research carried out on them, focusing, especially on the western Mediterranean. Much of their work focuses on rigorous research to understand these species, know them in depth and suggest the best way to protect them, and Marina Ibiza has supported them on this expedition by providing mooring at their facilities.

Since they acquired Irifi in 2017, the Tursiops team have traveled almost 20,000 nautical miles, but since 1998 they have been sailing, looking for families of sperm whales and dolphins that they can identify by the marks on the fin or the tail, but also by their sounds. "Each family of sperm whales has stereotyped patterns of clicks" says Txema Brotons, Dr. in Biology, "in Pitiusas we have even identified the same individual dolphin 11 and a half years after the first encounter thanks to the photos taken of their fins".

This team of biologists recognises each individual bottlenose dolphin by listening to the recordings obtained thanks to the 7 hydrophones strategically placed in Ibiza and Formentera, and which they analyse periodically. It is with these hydrophones that they collect the 'signature whistles' of the dolphins, which they later catalogue to identify individuals, analyse their presence and study their movements throughout the year, to find the best way to protect them.

Among their recognised achievements is the current delimitation of the Cabrera Maritime-Terrestrial National Park, which was expanded, promoted especially by Oceana, and for which they have also provided a large amount of data about the presence of cetaceans in the area. Likewise, they managed, in coordination with other groups from France and Scotland, to create an IMMA (Important Marine Mammal Area) which, with a surface area of 22,708 km2, surrounds a large part of the eastern Balearic Islands and the Mallorca Channel, seeking the protection of the sperm whale in our waters.

Daniel Marí, manager of Marina Ibiza states that “it is a pleasure to collaborate in initiatives like these that take care of our native fauna. The team is extraordinary and truly passionate about their work. We are delighted to have them here and to get to know these endearing species better, which we usually see around here". Daniel Marí and Javier Cid, port captain of Marina Ibiza, have personally said goodbye to the members of Tursiops, wishing to see them soon around the facilities and wanting to know more about their interesting projects.