Porpoise Alert Devices Research Project
I participated in an international research project investigating whether acoustic warning devices (PALs) effectively reduce harbor porpoise bycatch in gillnets without causing long-term behavioral changes. Working off the Danish coast, our team used drones, visual surveys, theodolite tracking, and underwater acoustic monitoring to observe how porpoises respond to these devices—collecting data that will help determine if PALs remain effective over time or if animals habituate to the signals, potentially impacting conservation efforts for threatened Baltic Sea populations.
