Donate

jupiter

Protect Wild Dolphins

Donate

Prompted by rising concerns about the well-being of dolphins along our shores, the Foundation launched the Palm Beach Dolphin Project in 2003. Working under National Marine Fisheries Service permits, the Palm Beach Dolphin Project is the flagship conservation research program of the Foundation. We explore the life history, behavior, habitat use, social lives, and communication of wild dolphins. In addition to gathering critical baseline data, we shed light on how the health of these top predators, and the conditions of the natural resources they depend upon, directly and indirectly, impact our own health and well-being. The project continuously produces new insights into the lives of wild bottlenose and Atlantic spotted dolphins using a variety of research techniques including boat surveys, photo identification, GIS mapping, and employment of drones. As of 2020, we have identified more than 600 bottlenose and spotted dolphins, many of which are seen regularly in our coastal waters.

Adopting a dolphin is an easy and effective way to support our research and conservation efforts. It is the perfect gift for yourself or that special someone. It is meaningful and lasting. It helps protect these wonderful, intelligent creatures and the world they live in, and it allows you to follow the life of your dolphin, learn about the community he lives in, the places he travels.

For more information on how to participate as a volunteer, intern or research assistant, and how to join our Ocean Sentinels Club and become a dolphin advocate, contact our Research Director Barbara Brunnick, Ph.D. In his essay Dr. Harzen provides a more detailed rationale of why it is important to study dolphins.

Read more

Meet the Scientist Lecture Series

Support Lectures

This program promotes (1) the pursuit of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM), and (2) encourages communication between scientists and residents of the communities in which they live and work.

The original series was produced in collaboration with the Jupiter Environmental Research and Field Studies Academy (JERFSA), a four-year academic program focusing on ecological principles and processes, environmental awareness, field studies and research, critical thinking and leadership skills.

Thanks to the support of the Rotary Club Jupiter-Tequesta and the Jupiter Inlet District, all lectures were free and open to the public.

For more information, contact Dr. Stefan Harzen.

 

Read more

Ocean of Notes Concert Series

Support Concerts

Science and music are actually closely related. It is the interaction of sounds, tempo, and pitch that creates music, just as facts and knowledge, combined with imagination and conjecture produces new scientific discoveries. And if you listen, you can hear dolphins, whales and a myriad of living things, together with currents and tides, performing a symphony that reverberates throughout the marine environment.

Our concerts are held at local venues, which included in the past the Rinker Room at the Kravis Center, the Borland Center for the Performing Arts, the Atlantic Theater, and the Performing Arts Academy of Jupiter.

Performers included blues slide guitar genius Roy Rogers and the Delta Rhythm Kings, guitar virtuoso Richard Gilewitz, Grammy nominated instrumentalist Tim May, a master on guitar, banjo and mandolin, Gretchen Priest-May, an amazing fiddle player of equal caliber, violinist, composer and former member of the Australian folk rock group The Sundowners Mark Russell, songwriter Gove Scrivenor, and Bert Lams, member of the world famous California Guitar Trio.

For more details or if you are interested in becoming a sponsor please contact Dr. Stefan Harzen.

Read more

Drones and Dolphins

When most people think of drones, they may think of Amazon’s announcement to deliver their packages with drones, or, on the darker side, the use of these remote controlled vehicles (RUVs) in the military. Some may have seen one of their neighbors flying a drone for fun, others may have privacy concerns. What all of the vehicles have in common is that they are either controlled by a ‘pilot’ somewhere on the ground, or a preset flight program.

As it turns out, aerial drones are now also being used in various scientific exploits, including conservation research of whales and dolphins. Following some experimentation, we are in the process of combining a drone-based data collection process with artificial intelligence to count and identify dolphins in real time. And because dolphins spent most of their time below the surface, we are also experimenting with an underwater ROV so we can expand our observations into the underwater world and thus improve our understanding of how dolphins live their lives and what we can do to ensure they continue to around for future generations.

For more information contact Benoit Duverneuil.[/paragraph]

Read more