Tag: older content

A morning trip to observe dolphins and record their behavior and sounds. It was Robin & Joana's first trip to observe and swim with the bottlenose dolphins here at Mikura. Their reaction was easier to read on their faces … smiles like dolphins … than for them to express their thoughts in words. But, in a brief attempt, their words: 'We felt awe at seeing them in their world and at how graceful they moved, behaved. We have about 2-3 years experience observing animal behavior, dolphins included, but our notes after this trip were skimpy.

And, two university students of Kathleen's arrive. Saturday began much the way friday ended … rain and wind. The ferry arrived bringing Joana and Robin with it. They are all settled in now and we had several good chats about their and DCP's research. I was also able to show them a bit of Mikura. But, … the show & tell occurred in the afternoon. At 08:30, I joined the Dai-5-Souei-maru and her senchoo, Souji-san with his five guests, to go dolphin searching and observing. We saw several groups.

It is the rainy season afterall. It is very nice to have 'my own' house. That is to have a cooking and bath facilities in the same place that I sleep and work on data. I met with Masaki and Mai today and we talked about a paper we are writing with Kogi and a few others. It is about the behavior of dolphins (mostly males) around two dead dolphin bodies: one male and one female. The dead dolphins were observed in two different years and in two different locations.

aka. The Dolphin House – my abode for 6 weeks I feel very very lucky to have a house with kitchen, bath and washing machine this field season. It seems almost decadent! The house in which I am now living was used last summer by the Dolphin Research Group here and they will return in July and June. Hishii-san and Kogi-san spoke with the house's owner and obtained permission for me to use it for May and June. Joana and Robin will stay with me as well.

My last ride on the Sutoretia-maru, the ferry to Mikura from Tokyo (Yes, I can get to email … hurray. We caught the ferry late Tuesday evening, at 10 PM. We arrived at Mikura at ~ 5:30 am. The morning did not really dawn so much as lighten from the dark. It was a cloudy and foggy morning. But, the sea was calm and the day promised to bring better weather. My first views of Mikura after almost a year away brought me new sights. The new pier now has a VERY tall section …

… might cause delays in postings to this field report site. FYI … as you may know or remember, the volcanic eruptions and such on Miyake Island (~18 km north of Mikura) wreaked havoc with the phone system on Mikura. I am not completely sure why the two systems are or were linked, and I am even more unsure as to whether anything has been 'fixed' for easier phone use this summer.

So … there is a good chance that I, Kathleen, will have no access to email while on the island of Mikura.

Meeting with friends & colleagues to plan workshop and collaborations My first weekend back to Japan after about a year away was a good one. I was able to catch up with some friends and meet with other researchers and staff
regarding our mutual projects studying the Mikura bottlenose dolphins as well as a workshop that we will give to the children on Mikura. Adults and island guests will be welcome, but our program will be geared to the younger generation(s).

A long but smooth flight My arrival went well and the flight was relatively smooth, though the plane was full. Many of you will remember the eruption on Miyake Island in 2000 and for those of you who don't, please check out some of the entries in the Japan 2000 Field Reports. I lived on and worked from Miyake to study the Mikura dolphins for two years (1997 – 1999). And from 2000 forward, I have based myself from Mikura.

Beginning of Field Reports from Mikura Island, Japan Welcome back to our online field reports site. As usual, our summer season begins in Japan. I, Kathleen, will write the reports from Japan (May and June) and from the White Sand Ridge, Bahamas (August & September). As in the past, I will post updates about my field research gathering data studying dolphin communication. I will include collection procedures, preliminary analyses and various anecdotes. I will also include glimpses into my life among the community on Mikura Island.