Shireen Bhalla

Aside from when I was 12 and briefly wanted to be a marine biologist like every other kid, for most of my life I didn’t consider marine research as a career path. Research in some form or the other yes, I’ve studied stray dogs, mountain goats, pollinators, even air quality. Then came a happenstance internship at the seal rescue centre in Pieterburen. Five months of seal care, recording grey seal pups, and studying rhythm in pinniped vocalisations, and I was hooked. The smell of raw fish at 7 am and the otherworldly sweeps of a Weddell seal are a heady mixture that went right to my head.

I went on to do a master’s in conservation at the University of Oxford where I cemented my label as the ‘acoustics girl’ by studying the underwater soundscapes of False Bay, South Africa. Joining OSC as an acoustician means that I get to use this exciting tool to study and protect marine biodiversity.

Other exciting things at the moment are living in Edinburgh, playing ultimate frisbee, hiking around Scotland, and lots of water sports.