Founded in 1986, the Tethys Research Institute is a private non-profit organisation specialised in cetacean research. Tethys has generated one of the largest datasets on Mediterranean cetaceans and over 300 scientific contributions.
Tethys aims to protect the Mediterranean biodiversity by promoting the adoption of a precautionary approach for the management of natural resources. Public awareness and conservation activities, coupled with education and capacity building, find their strength in a robust scientific background. The activities conducted by Tethys seek to prevent the decline of marine species and to encourage a sustainable use of the marine environment.
Tethys first conceived and proposed the creation of the Pelagos Sanctuary (in 1991) and of the Losinj Dolphin Reserve in Croatia (in 1993).
Tethys has conducted long-term studies on cetaceans in the Corso-Ligurian-Provencal basin, in the Adriatic Sea, and in the Ionian Sea. Tethys has also done research on cetaceans in the Messina Strait and in several other Mediterranean and Atlantic areas.
Research methods used by Tethys include the use of remote sensing and telemetry data, the combined use of laser range-finding binoculars and GPS to passively track and record the horizontal movements of whales, population studies, bioacoustic research, photo-identification and behavioural sampling, remote biopsy sampling for genetic and toxicological analyses, and historical research.
Tethys owns enormous photographic archives of cetacean images that have resulted in the identification of over 1,500 individuals of eight Mediterranean species.
With a core of about 30 collaborators the Tethys Research Institute has involved in its campaigns thousands of people from all over the world, and has developed a network that is constantly growing.
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Tethys is a member of Cetacean Alliance, an international not-for-profit network of non-governmental organisations committed to preserving marine biodiversity and reducing human impact on cetacean populations. The network includes NGOs with bases in Argentina, Australia, Austria, Croatia, Germany, Greece, Italy, Slovenia, Spain, Switzerland, the UK and the US. NGOs in the network have a collective membership of over 100,000. |
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Tethys is partner to the CMS/UNEP Agreement on the Conservation of Cetaceans in the Black Sea, Mediterranean Sea and Contiguous Atlantic Area (ACCOBAMS). |
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The office of Tethys is housed at the magnificent liberty-style building of the Milan Civic Aquarium and Hydrobiological Station, of which Tethys is a partner. |
Policy on cetacean biopsy sampling
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Italian
Curriculum 1986-2006
Riciclaggio e smaltimento di RAEE (Rifiuti di Apparecchiature Elettriche ed Elettroniche)
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Tethys (364
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