Slapped by a whale’s tail, and other animal adventures

Whale and dolphin researcher, Barry McGovern’s love of sea creatures started in Cork, Ireland, when as a child he met the county’s solitary, friendly dolphin, named for the singer Dusty Springfield.

Barry grew up on Ireland’s West coast, in a tiny surfing village where he knew all the bird calls off by heart.

His interest in animal science led him to Edinburgh Zoo, where he fed cassowaries and regularly, accidentally spooked a flock of Chilean flamingos.

He assisted on a mammal research trip in Namibia, where he learned just how many people are required to take biopsy sample from a giraffe. 

Eventually he settled on whales, and he learned the lesson that while animals can be lots of fun to study, they come with a heavy research load, and not much time spent out in the wild.

Barry has been slapped in the face by a whale’s tail and watched mother humpback whales squirt-feed their calves breast milk like cottage cheese. And he couldn’t be happier. 

Today, Barry works at the Pacific Whale Foundation, Australia. 

This episode was produced by Alice Moldovan. Conversations' EP is Nicola Harrison. Presented by Sarah Kanowski.

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