BDRI's STAFF

Two or three project staff members will be present year round. Occasionally, visiting graduate students, volunteers and researchers will also be present. The researchers are experienced with the study area, the animals, the research protocols and other logistics.

Chief Biologist & Director

Mr. Bruno Diaz Lopez, originary from Spain , is the Cofounder, Director and Chief Biologist of the BDRI. Actually he has published over 40 scientific articles in international journals and conferences and has delivered a number of lectures and public talks on cetacean research and conservation around Europe. His main interests are behavioural ecology, communication and effects of human activities on bottlenose dolphins, particularly fisheries, tourism and aquaculture. Bruno has studied marine mammals since 1995, beginning in both the Atlantic Ocean and Mediterranean Sea in the early years and with specific bottlenose dolphin studies in Sardinia since 1999. From the University of Santiago de Compostela and University of Vigo in Spain , he has worked on different research teams in Italy and Spain teaching marine mammals biology, animal behaviour and mentor graduate students. He has trained a number of dolphin research assistants and has supervised dozens of students working on their thesis about cetaceans in the Mediterranean Sea and Atlantic Ocean. He is co-author of the books “Dolphins, Anatomy, Behaviour and Threats”, “Handbook of Models used in Ecosystem and Environmental Management”. He is reviewer for scientific journals including “Mammalian Biology”, “ICES Journal of Marine Science”, “Marine Mammals Science“, “Journal of Marine Biological Ass. UK,” etc. He can speak English, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, Galician and some Japanese. Since 2004 Bruno has been living in Golfo Aranci and does research year-round in the Aranci Gulf. He is responsible for the overall goals of the project and for training and supervising volunteers and students along with Andrea Shirai.

General Manager

Mrs. Andrea Shirai, originary from Paraguay-Japan, is the Cofounder and Manager of the BDRI. She is currently in charge of the day-to-day management of the BDRI's Programmes. She is directly responsible for administering research material, and fundraising. Her responsibilities include administration and research support, organizing the general database, photoidentification of dolphins, transcription of survey data in Sardinia and more. Her main research interests are primarily focused on the bottlenose dolphin photo-identification and respiratory patterns. Since 2005 she has published over 10 scientific articles in international journals and conferences as the result of her participation in BDRI 's research projects.

Research assistants, invited researchers and interns are vital components of the project. These young scientists volunteer months of their lives in exchange for research experience. Interns are generally college seniors or recent graduates with backgrounds in biological, environmental, or marine science. Many are completing their thesis work with the BDRI. In the past the project had research assistants from Brazil , Bulgary, Canada , Czech Republic , France, England , Germany , Italy , Israel , Japan , Nederland , Spain, Switzerland and the US.

Luna

Luna is a small dog (Welsh Corgi) arrived from Japan with Bruno & Andrea in 2004. She is very friendly and loves people playing with her. Her main "research" interests are primarialy focused on sigth dolphins during the day, sleep, and detect dolphins presence during nocturnal encounters.