special guests.

Dr Mike Bossley and Tony Bartram, of the Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society, spoke to the group and joined them on a cruise.

Dr Bossley said they were helping John Pirie Secondary School with a project on local dolphins.

“We teach them how to identify individual dolphins,” he said.

“They get an understanding how they go about their daily lives.”

The organisation received a $43,000 grant from the George Alexander Foundation, a philanthropic society.

Mr Bartram said this underpinned the program.

“The money has been used to help pay for petrol costs for the volunteers, Kevin Pallant and Trevor Thomas, who also donate their time,” he said. “This project has become the community’s.” Students take photographs of the creatures for cataloguing.

This data is then made available to scientists globally.

The students even have the privilege of naming the dolphin if they discover it.

Student Justin Stewart said it was a good experience.

“I have seen quite a few dolphins,” he said. “I have never really done anything like this before.”

Mr Bartram said they had seen between 15 and 30 dolphins in the past few trips.

“There are a lot of animals out there,” he said. “It is good to have a look.”

He hoped the community would help feed information to the students if they saw dolphins.

“They look for the place and time and photograph them,” he said.