Danielle Waples

I am interested in the behavioral ecology of marine mammals, particularly aspects of foraging ecology, habitat use, and fisheries interactions. I received my Master's in Marine Sciences from the University of California at Santa Cruz working on seasonal differences in activity budgets of bottlenose dolphins in Sarasota, Florida. I moved from California to North Carolina 3 years ago (talk about culture shock!) and have been working as a researcher with Andy Read since then. My field work consists of small boat driving, photo-identifying bottlenose dolphins, collecting data on dolphin and whale activity, trawling for fish and invertebrates, ensuring Meeko's nutritional needs are met, and blimp wrangling.

I have participated in a number of interesting projects, several of them focusing on the interactions between marine animals and commercial fisheries. We just completed a study that used an overhead video system to look at how dolphins behave around gillnets, in order to understand why dolphins sometimes become entangled in this gear. Most recently I am working with Catherine McClellan who is putting satellite tags on sea turtles. This has been a great opportunity to trailer our boat around North Carolina, sample regional cuisine, and interact with local fishermen.