About DolphinZone
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Welcome! Thank you for visiting Dolphin Zone.
Dolphin Zone CIC (Community Interest Company) was launched in 2024 to find out more about the common dolphins around the coast of south-west England. These beautiful and charismatic dolphins, called Delphinus delphis in Latin, are the most abundant dolphin in the world. There are around six million of them in the world’s oceans.
Despite there being so many, we don’t know much about their social lives. Do they live in families or groups, and where do they spend most of their time? At Dolphin Zone, we are trying to identify as many individuals as we can to show if they are around Devon and Cornwall regularly, all the time or across many years. It is important to find this out so that we can ensure they are protected.
©Marine Discovery Penzance
Sarah Matthews
Project Lead
I have a lifelong passion for wildlife, especially cetaceans (whales, dolphins and porpoises). My first wild dolphin encounter was with a magnificent superpod of Atlantic white-sided dolphins off Massachusetts in 1994. However, in 2017, it was seeing a humpback whale here in Devon which made me realise that I didn't have to travel far to see the most incredible wildlife, especially the dolphins.
After 25 years as a teacher, I made a huge career switch. In order to develop the knowledge and skills to study and advocate for the common dolphins, I returned to university (Exeter) for an MSc in Animal Behaviour. I spend as much time as I can by or on the sea, studying the marine ecosystem, including seals and birds. I’m a qualified Responsible Whale Watching Guide, a Marine Mammal Surveyor for ORCA, a member of the Devon Marine Strandings Network, and am involved in local organisations which gather data and develop conservation strategies.
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I am excited to be focusing on the common dolphins around South West England. I'm fascinated by all aspects of animal behaviour and culture, including "epimeletic" behaviour (seen when animals tend to others who are dead or dying), altruism and alloparenting (looking after others without benefit to themselves) and trends, such as when the Southern Resident Killer Whales wore salmon on their heads. We may find similar stories in our common dolphins, but until we spend some time looking at them, we won't know.
Natasha Duxbury
Project Assistant
Hello! my name is Natasha and I am a recent graduate from the University of Exeter, where I studied marine biology. I have a particular interest in the ecology of odontocetes (toothed whales, which includes dolphins!) and am excited to be working with Dolphin Zone as a research assistant.
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Despite how charismatic common dolphins (Delphinus delphis) are and how regularly they are seen off the South West coast of England, there is still so much we don't know about them. It will be interesting to see what photo identification can reveal in the coming years. I would particularly like to understand whether the common dolphins seen along the Cornish and Devon Coast are resident here.
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Outside of Dolphin Zone, I work regularly with Research Development UK, which specialises in gathering bioacoustic data around the UK. In the future, I would like to pursue research into the ecology of the enigmatic beaked whales.
Our Supporters
Marine Discovery Penzance
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Atlantic Adventures
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Squirrel365
Helping with website and app development
Thank you to everyone who has allowed us to use their images, and especially to AK Wildlife Cruises, Falmouth, and Marine Discovery Penzance, who have generously provided a steady stream of data and photos which will help us to understand "who are those dolphins?" in Cornwall in 2025.
To support or sponsor, please get in touch with sarah@dolphinzone.org or through the message button below.