Project for the study of the cetaceans of the strait (S.C.S)

The SCS project(Cetaceans Study of the Strait) was developped with the purpose of monitoring and quantifying the sea mammals crossing this part of sea in order to study the biology, the habits, the quantities, etc. of the different species passing through these waters; this project is developped in two phases; the activities carried out in the sea consists in the observation, acoustic monitoring through submarine detectors, and photo identification, while the second phase is characterized by the observation activity from land and by the data analysis. The observations from land are carried out from a medieval tower , situated on the beach of Cape Peloro, where the watchers alternate in watching shifts of about three hours, from dawn to sunset and for almost 365 days a year. This is possible becauseè cape peloro is situated just half way from the Thyrrenian and Ionian seas,

so that when the Ionian is rough the observation can be done in the Thyrrenian and viceversa.The data analysis is carried out inside the tower, in a room overlooking the sea, using a computer-operated video camera directed on the sea where it is also possible to record the passage of cetaceans. The most frequently observed cetaceans are: : bottlenosed dolphin; striped dolphin; sperm whale ; fin whale ; risso's dolphin, common dolphin, and , in certain periods and conditions,long-finned pilot whale; rough toothed dolphin e cuvier's beacked whale .