“MObI – Marine Mammal Observers of Oceania by Internet” is a new smartphone application now available to help users distinguish marine mammals at any time in New Caledonia and French Polynesia.  If at sea and you happen to make a sighting, the phone app allows you to identify the species with a description and an image.  It also ensures this information will be recorded to a database.

Once downloaded, the free app can be used without an internet connection.

When it comes to sighting marine mammals, scientists have been calling on the general public and mariners to collect information. Details of observations had then to be forwarded to organisations by e-mail or snail mail.  The new smartphone app simplifies this process and also allows for amateur marine mammal watchers to provide useful data.

This pilot project is the brain child of marine biologist Marc Oremus, cetacean specialist with the IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature), and the WWF office in New Caledonia.  It is supported by WWF France, Crème de la Mer, Te Me Um and the Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme (SPREP). At present, the app is only available in French, but once it has been trialled in New Caledonia and French Polynesia an English version will be produced.

The application was developed with the invaluable knowledge of Claire Garrigue and Morgan Poupon of Opération Cétacés based in New Caledonia and Michael Poole of the South Pacific Whale Research Consortium. The excellent nature drawings were made available by Brett Jarret.

You can download the free MObI app at Google Play or the Apple Store.

Read the whole story from the SPREP News circular enclosed, adapted from WWF New Caledonia Press Release.