Highlighting Student at Scripps: Jessica Sportelli
Jessica Sportelli's Research on Killer Whale Bioacoustics in the Eastern Canadian Arctic
Jessica Sportelli, a marine biology graduate from UC San Diego, started her academic journey at Moorpark Community College. Her zoology professor, Jana Johnson, served as a significant role model for Sportelli.
Sportelli's passion for the ocean began in high school when she became scuba certified. This passion led her to pursue a career in marine biology, and she transferred to UC San Diego, where she graduated with a bachelor's degree in marine biology.
Now, Sportelli is conducting research on killer whale bioacoustics in the Eastern Canadian Arctic at the Marine Physical Laboratory at Scripps. Her research focuses on studying the vocal behavior and acoustic communication of killer whales in that region.
Sportelli's work aims to better understand how these whales use sound in their natural environment, which can provide insights into their social structures, behaviors, population dynamics, and how they might be affected by environmental changes and human activities. This research contributes to conservation efforts by informing strategies to protect killer whales and their habitat in the Arctic.
Sportelli is particularly interested in describing the dialect of an unknown pod of killer whales and understanding their migration patterns. She is working with John Hildebrand and PhD student Josh Jones on this project.
Killer whales are not common in the area of the Eastern Canadian Arctic, but their prolonged stay, migration, and predation on narwhals is concerning. Sportelli hopes her research will make a difference in a community, whether it is an Indigenous community in the Canadian Arctic or a community of endangered marine mammals.
Moreover, Sportelli aspires to continue working in the North Atlantic/Arctic region on marine mammal communities. She finds listening to the whales in her research to be exciting.
Mental health is an important challenge that Sportelli faces as a student. Despite this, she remains dedicated to her research and hopes it will contribute to conservation laws and practices.
As a part of the Contiguous Bachelor's/Master's Degree Program, Sportelli is currently pursuing her graduate degree in marine biology at the University of California San Diego's Marine Physical Laboratory at Scripps.
You can listen to a killer whale call from Sportelli's research attached to this article.
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Listen to a killer whale call from Sportelli's research
Jessica Sportelli, inspired by her zoology professor Jana Johnson, embarked on a career journey in marine biology, starting at Moorpark Community College and culminating with a bachelor's degree from UC San Diego. Passionate about fitness-and-exercise, health-and-wellness, and mental-health, Sportelli also recognizes the importance of personal-growth and career-development.
Now, at the Marine Physical Laboratory at Scripps, Sportelli is investigating killer whale bioacoustics in the Eastern Canadian Arctic. This research uncovers insights into the whales' social structures, behaviors, population dynamics, and potential impacts of environmental changes and human activities (science). Her findings could contribute to educational-and-self-development by offering new knowledge to students and the wider public (learning).
Through therapies-and-treatments, Sportelli addresses the mental-health challenges that come with her research, while remaining fully committed to her work. As a part of the Contiguous Bachelor's/Master's Degree Program at UC San Diego's Marine Physical Laboratory at Scripps, she is also pursuing her graduate degree in marine biology.
In the future, Sportelli aims to continue her studies in the North Atlantic/Arctic region, focusing on marine mammal communities (womens-health, mens-health, and parenting are areas relevant to marine mammal conservation). Her work seeks to make a positive impact on Indigenous communities in the Canadian Arctic and endangered marine mammals (workplace-wellness and health-and-wellness).
Aside from her scientific passion, Sportelli has expressed a keen interest in skin-care and space-and-astronomy. She finds listening to the whales in her research, as well as exploring starry skies, both incredibly fascinating (space-and-astronomy).
In her free time, Jessica enjoys various fitness-and-exercise regimens, which contributes to her overall well-being and helps her maintain a positive attitude (fitness-and-exercise and mental-health). These activities are vital for her personal-growth, as they fuel her motivation and determination to succeed in her marine biology career (career-development).
