The Cetacean Sanctuary Research (CSR) — established in 1990 — is a long-term project focusing on the ecology, behaviour, feeding habits and conservation of the cetacean species living in the Pelagos Sanctuary. Eight different species of whales and dolphins live in the Pelagos Sanctuary in the north-western Mediterranean: striped dolphins, sperm whales, fin whales and bottlenose dolphins are the most common marine mammals.
Our cruises are quite different from simple whale watching.
Every day will be spent at sea as long as the weather conditions allow it. You will be involved in various research activities, from sighting shifts during the day to night watches, in case weather and sea conditions are good enough to spend the night in the open sea.
You also help the researchers collecting scientific data, including geographic location of sightings, dive durations, behaviour, group size and composition. In some cases, faecal and prey samples are also collected in order to obtain information on dietary habits of fin whales and sperm whales.
Researchers and project participants often listen to vocalisations recorded in the field and help in the processing of digital photos of cetaceans sighted, in order to recognise different individuals.
Lectures on cetacean biology and conservation are also given by the researchers. The skipper is always eager to answer questions about navigation and sailing techniques.
No previous experience.
Participants must also be willing to share housekeeping duties and space on the boat. The contributions of the participants over the years represented the main funding source for our research.
Research is conducted on board our research vessel “Pelagos”, departing weekly from Sanremo( Italy), from May to October.
“Pelagos” is a two-masts motorsailer used for the research with citizen-science participants in the cetacean Sanctuary. The spacious and very comfortable Tethys boat is managed according to the rules of responsible tourism; it is equipped with sophisticated instrumentation used for navigation and the collection of scientific data. “Pelagos” has two masts and can sail and manoeuvre by means of a fully electronic system, that can be switched to manual at any time. An inflatable craft is sometimes used to get closer to the animals. Since 2012 the vessel is cleaned only with eco-friendly detergents (organic,non-toxic and biodegradable), kindly provided by Biolù..
Typical day
In a typical day we wake-up between 7:00 and 8:00 AM, depending on circumstances. We will depart after breakfast and spend the day navigating and conducting research. Both researchers and participants will be assigned sighting shifts in order to ensure constant sighting effort. In some cases, when weather conditions are optimal, a night may be spent at sea for research purposes. However, less favourable conditions will force us to spend the night in the harbour or in a sheltered bay. Once sighted, cetaceans may be followed for up to several hours, while a series of variables and information is recorded.
During the day, there is also time to relax when you are not on shift, and sometimes even stop for a swim break, and learn basic navigation skills from the skipper.
One must always bear in mind that flexibility is essential in order to participate to research activities such as this one. Please note that since weather and sea conditions favorable for cetacean sighting and data collection (lack of wind and flat sea) are not the same that allow sailing, the boat normally does not use sails and proceeds with the engine on.
Details on Arrival
Boarding on Monday and disembark on Sunday. Cruises still available: 29th Jul, 5th Aug, 12th Aug, 19th Aug, 26th Aug, 2nd Sep, 9th Sep, 16th Sep, 23rd Sep.
The reseach season is from May to September during the sunny and warm Mediterranean summer when the whales arrives in the area for feeding.
Arrival on Monday afternnon and meeting on board the research boat, ice-breaking session, introduction to the project and presentation of all staff and team members, information about safety measures.
Tue-Sat: Visual and acoustic monitoring during navigation surveys in daylight hours; possible nights spent out at sea in favourable weather conditions; daily lectures.
Sunday: Pack-up, boat cleaning and departure.
Free-time activities
making it one of the most attractive tourist destinations on the Italian Riviera. There are two tourist harbours: The old Porto Vecchio and the modern Portosole. There are many boutiques and local shops in the town centre. The colourful market, held on Tuesday and Saturday
mornings in Piazza Eroi Sanremesi, is famous among the people living in the Italian and French Riviera.
Monte Carlo, 43km from Sanremo is one of Europe's leading tourist resorts. If you plan to visit this city before or after boarding on Pelagos, you should not forget to visit the Monaco Cathedral, the Napoleon Museum, the Prince's Palace and the Oceanographic Museum. The Oceanographic Museum, created in 1910, is a monumental structure with an impressive façade towering above the sea. The museum houses remarkable collections of various marine species and a large section is dedicated to cetaceans.
Nice is a city in
southern France. A major tourist centre and a leading resort city on the
French Riviera (Côte d'Azur), it is the historical capital of the
County of Nice. It is situated roughly 55km from Sanremo. If you are
planning to visit the city, you should not miss the Cours Saleya, with
its colourful flower and food market and all its fantastic pedestrian
streets for a spot of shopping. The Colline du Château, through the
labyrinthine alleyways of Vieux Nice, offers a wonderful view of the
city from the top. Nice also has excellent museums like the Matisse
museum or the Mamac Museum of modern art.
Snorkling
Opera
Program Requirements
Included Services
Before your journey
On-site services
Included in the fee:
Food and beverages (breakfast, lunch and dinner, except for alcoholic and soft drinks) for the duration of the cruise
Accommodation on board
Mooring expenses in Sanremo harbour
24h harbour showers
Electricity, water heating and cooking costs
Fuel for the research vessel and the inflatable craft
Lectures and training by Tethys researchers
Certificate of involvement in the Cetacean Sanctuary Research
Research by Tethys in the Ligurian Sea is conducted from a comfortable vessel, "Pelagos" — a 21m motorsailer with two masts built in 1990. The deck is covered with teak wood and is particularly comfortable. Below deck, accommodation is entirely finished with teak. The comfortable dining room has leather seating, a music player, a computer with a large monitor, a bar and a fridge as well as air conditioning (for use in the harbour or when necessary). The galley is small but comfortable and equipped with three refrigerators. The kitchen is equipped with three fridges and is located in a separate cabin. There are five cabins hosting up to 16 people (up to eleven participants, four researchers and the skipper): 2 four-bed cabins (one for the researchers), and a very large and comfortable cabin for 6 people (2 double and 2 single beds), and a small cabin at the bow with two single beds (for the skipper and one researcher). Each cabin has its own private bathroom, equipped with hot water. In order to preserve the boat’s wood panelling in the bathrooms and control the humidity levels below deck, it is our custom to take hot water showers on deck at the stern while navigating. Otherwise, we benefit from access to the showers in the harbour, 24/7 and free of charge for boat guests.
Project
participants live and sleep on board Pelagos throughout the duration of
the cruise, sharing the same cabins and bathrooms. Internet access is
not available onboard, but there are Internet cafés in town.
Before the arrival of the participants we go shopping so you can find on board pasta and rice, spell, cous cous, legumes (chickpeas, lentils, peas etc), fresh vegetables such as zucchini, aubergines , tomatoes, potatoes, etc, eggs, cheeses and of course a lot of fruit. Large quantities of water sparkling and fresh water. We have on board also red and white wine and beer.
For breakfast you can choose milk (also soya and rice milk), the and coffee, yogurts , biscuits, cornflakes, crispbread, bread, butter jam and honey, etc, depend on what you prefer.
Everyday two participants and one researcher will cook breakfast, lunch and
dinner and
wash up. We will suggest you some receipts always considering the food
requirement of the participants
(vegetarians, vegans) and also possibly allergies and intolerances but we
encourage participants to prepare different recipes from their home countries
and share them with the rest of the team.
Program Fees
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