Vanessa Pirotta is an Australian wildlife scientist, science communicator and author.[1] Her research uses innovative technologies, like drones and AI, for wildlife conservation.[2] Pirotta is the founder and chief scientist of Wild Sydney Harbour,[3] a scientific and citizen science program which is learning more about marine life in Sydney Harbour, Australia.
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Career
editPirotta completed a Bachelor of Science in zoology/animal biology at the Australian National University in 2010.[4] Her Masters of Research in Conservation Biology at Macquarie University in 2014, and her PhD in marine sciences at Macquarie University in 2018.[5] Her PhD research focused on the conservation of marine wildlife, investigating human induced and natural threats to cetaceans (whale, dolphin and porpoise) around the world, conducting research in Tonga, Madagascar and Antarctica.[6] She is most recognised for her use of drones to collect whale snot (visible plumes of spray) in order to conduct an assessment of whale health. Her TedX talk about whale snot has been viewed more than 36,000 times.[7]
Media
editPirotta has written for Vogue Australia[8] and The Conversation[9] and has been interviewed by ABC News,[10] SBS,[11] The Conversation,[12] Channel 7 News,[13] The Sydney Morning Herald,[14] and Cosmos Magazine.[15]
Books
editPirotta has published three children's books about whales:
Awards and prizes
edit- 2018 winner of FameLab Australia.[19]
- 2019 Australian Financial Review 100 Women of Influence.[20]
- 2021 Science & Technology Australia Superstar of STEM.[21]
Selected publications
edit- Prendergast, Kit, Vanderstock, Amelie, Neilly, Heather, Ross, Catherine, Pirotta, Vanessa, and Tegart, Patrick (2021). Potential and pitfalls of citizen science with children: Reflections on Pollinators in the Playground project. Austral Ecology.
- Pirotta V, Shen K, Liu S, Phan HTH, O’Brien JK, Meagher P, Mitchell J, Willis J and Morton E (2022). Detecting illegal wildlife trafficking via real time tomography 3D X-ray imaging and automated algorithms. Front. Conserv. Sci.[22]
- Pirotta, Vanessa, David P. Hocking, Jason Iggleden, and Robert Harcourt. (2022). Drone Observations of Marine Life and Human–Wildlife Interactions off Sydney, Australia. Drones 6, no. 3: 75.[23]
- Brasier M and Pirotta V (2022) Humpback Whales Have Super Feeding Events in Australian Waters. Front. Young Minds. 10:713720.[24]
- Pirotta, V., Franklin, W., Mansfield, L., Lowe, J., and Peterson, O. (2023). Sighting records of “Migaloo” the white humpback whale provide evidence of Australian site fidelity and use of New Zealand waters as a migratory route. Australian Zoologist[25]
- Raoult, V., Pirotta, V., Gaston, T.F., Norman, B., Reynolds, S., Smith, T.M., Double, M., How, J., and Hayward, M.W. (2023). Widespread exposure of marine parks, whales, and whale sharks to shipping. Marine and Freshwater Research[26]
References
edit- ^ PUBLISHING, CSIRO. Oceans at Night.
- ^ Dalton, Angus (2023-02-03). "Lunch with the spokeswoman for the ocean's oddities". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 2024-07-24.
- ^ "Wild Sydney Harbour". Wild Sydney Harbour. Retrieved 2024-07-24.
- ^ "From campus to whale snot". ANU College of Science. Retrieved 2024-07-24.
- ^ "A whale of a time". Macquarie University. 14 November 2022. Retrieved 24 July 2024.
- ^ Pirotta, Vanessa (2022-03-29). Migrating humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) do not respond to underwater construction or whale alarms off Sydney, Australia (PhD thesis). Macquarie University.
- ^ TEDx Talks (2019-08-27). What "whale snot" tells us about whales and the ocean. Retrieved 2024-07-24 – via YouTube.
- ^ Pirotta, Vanessa (8 March 2024). "Life in Letters: A leading scientist pens a letter to her childhood self about perseverance and striving on". Vogue.
- ^ O'Brien, Justine; Pirotta, Vanessa (2022-09-22). "Lizard in your luggage? We're using artificial intelligence to detect wildlife trafficking". The Conversation. Retrieved 2024-07-24.
- ^ "Warming oceans delaying pygmy blue whale migration". www.abc.net.au. 2023-11-15. Retrieved 2024-07-24.
- ^ "Burials at sea for stranded whales: researchers seek environmental best-practice". SBS News. Retrieved 2024-07-24.
- ^ Stevens, Eloise (2024-04-21). "Do whales sneeze? The Conversation's Curious Kids podcast". The Conversation. Retrieved 2024-07-24.
- ^ "Grave fears still held for saved whales off WA coast after dozens die". 7NEWS. 2024-04-25. Retrieved 2024-07-24.
- ^ Dalton, Angus (2023-02-03). "Lunch with the spokeswoman for the ocean's oddities". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 2024-07-24.
- ^ "Looking large: Dr Vanessa Pirotta explains her love of whales". cosmosmagazine.com. Retrieved 2024-07-24.
- ^ "Humpback Highway: Diving into the mysterious world of whales". UNSW Press. Retrieved 2024-07-24.
- ^ PUBLISHING, CSIRO. Oceans at Night.
- ^ PUBLISHING, CSIRO. The Voyage of Whale and Calf.
- ^ "Vanessa Pirotta wins FameLab Australia 2018 title". Retrieved 24 July 2024.
- ^ "Dr Vanessa Pirotta - AFR Women of Influence". Retrieved 2024-07-24.
- ^ "Dr Vanessa Pirotta". Science and Technology Australia. Retrieved 2024-07-24.
- ^ Pirotta, Vanessa; Shen, Kaikai; Liu, Sheldon; Phan, Ha Tran Hong; O’Brien, Justine K.; Meagher, Phoebe; Mitchell, Jessica; Willis, Joel; Morton, Ed (2022-09-22). "Detecting illegal wildlife trafficking via real time tomography 3D X-ray imaging and automated algorithms". Frontiers in Conservation Science. 3. doi:10.3389/fcosc.2022.757950. ISSN 2673-611X.
- ^ Pirotta, Vanessa; Hocking, David P.; Iggleden, Jason; Harcourt, Robert (March 2022). "Drone Observations of Marine Life and Human–Wildlife Interactions off Sydney, Australia". Drones. 6 (3): 75. doi:10.3390/drones6030075. ISSN 2504-446X.
- ^ Brasier, Madeleine J.; Pirotta, Vanessa (2022-12-02). "Humpback Whales Have Super Feeding Events in Australian Waters". Frontiers for Young Minds. 10. doi:10.3389/frym.2022.713720. ISSN 2296-6846.
- ^ Pirotta, Vanessa; Franklin, Wally; Mansfield, Leigh; Lowe, Jodie; Peterson, Oskar (2023-04-03). "Sighting records of "Migaloo" the white humpback whale provide evidence of Australian site fidelity and use of New Zealand waters as a migratory route". Australian Zoologist. 42 (4): 1014–1028. doi:10.7882/AZ.2022.043. ISSN 2204-2105.
- ^ Raoult, Vincent; Pirotta, Vanessa; Gaston, Troy F.; Norman, Brad; Reynolds, Samantha; Smith, Tim M.; Double, Mike; How, Jason; Hayward, Matt W. (2022-11-28). "Widespread exposure of marine parks, whales, and whale sharks to shipping". Marine and Freshwater Research. 74 (1): 75–85. doi:10.1071/MF22050. ISSN 1448-6059.