Dr Vanessa Pirotta

Cleaning up our blue backyard on @cleanupaustralia Day. Today I took the time to put the gloves on and look for rubbish in Gamay.

Helping clean up the local environment for the dolphins and fur seals we are protecting!

#cleanupaustraliaday #beach #cleanup #weekend #active

Who is more influential: scientist, athlete or actor?

Find out… via @sailgp.bsky.social

#thinkaboutit #sailgp #influencer #scientist

Now that’s a fun snap on campus! Claudia and I enjoyed teaching second year students today at @mqsociology.bsky.social

We’re helping students get ahead in their careers and prepping them for the fantastic road ahead in their studies.

#uni #science #womeninstem #scicomm #selfie

Laurie the dolphin trainer aka @mattokine, from one of our favourite children’s television shows here in Australia- H20: Just Add Water.

I got all the behind the scenes goss about what it was like to be head trainer and @phoebejtonkin’s onscreen boss.

#h20 #dolphin #tv #childhood #goldcoast

Announcement from me! @mqsociology.bsky.social students, meet your whaley-new lecturer!

In addition to my ongoing scientific research, I’m also lecturing now.

Underwater snap by the OG of marine mammal science- Prof Harcourt

#humpday #annoucement #mymq #drvanessapirotta #science

What a day. Risso’s and pan tropical spotted dolphins offshore of Sydney, Australia.

Part of our SOMS research- Sydney Offshore Megafauna Surveys with the @gamayrangers

#dolphin #offshore #research #wildlifephotography #wildlife

I spoke to @abcnews_au to help people be aware of this entangled whale.

This whale was last seen in Victorian waters on Friday 13/2/26. If you see it, call:

@deeca_vic emergency hotline: 1300 136 017
@orrcaaustralia : (02) 9415 3333

#entanglement #humpbackwhale #victoria

Entangled humpback whale update 15/2/26

An entangled humpback whale was observed yesterday in Victorian waters. Thank you Graeme Burgan & Wildlife Coast Cruises

You can report to two locations:
Vic Gov: 1300 136 017.
ORRCA: (02) 9415 3333

#entanglement #humpbackwhale #whale #victoria #australia

This is SO kind! Thank you!

This. Dolphins smack bang in the middle of Sydney Harbour, yet we know so little about them here! (13/2/26)

We’re on a mission to find out more about them in our own blue backyard.

📸Transport for NSW Maritme

Happy Friday!

#dolphin #dolphins #sydney #australia #sydneyharbour

A professional headshot of Vanessa Pirotta holding her children's picture book, The Voyage of Whale and Calf. Vanessa wears a black blazer, and her shoulder-length dark hair is wavy as she smiles gently at us.

Care for future scientists runs through all of @drvanessapirotta.bsky.social's work.

As author of the picture books The Voyage of Whale and Calf & Oceans at Night, she knows that wonder begins early & encouragement can shape a lifetime.

Learn more about her books: www.publishing.csiro.au/book/8029

Shark inside swimming net- it was probably more nervous about the person filming it!

#shark #sharknet #manly #sydney #comms

G’day Hugh Jackman and Ryan Reynolds 👋 Come for a kayak!

As the new owners of the @bondsflyingroos, we thought you might like to see @sailgp’s blue racetrack and learn more about the beautiful Sydney Harbour your team will race on.

@sailgp.bsky.social

#SailGP #racing #Australia #Sydney #sailing

Dr Pirotta standing on rocky outcrop beside the ocean, camera in hand.

🐋 Dr Pirotta captivates via her storytelling & empowers communities to actively participate in marine protection. “We as scientists should take the chance when asked to share knowledge,” she says.

👉 Read more: bit.ly/3NjCsaU

@drvanessapirotta.bsky.social

POV: Australian humpback hangout right now.
Get ready, annual humpback day is coming....
#whale #antarctica #annualhumpbackday #ocean
@Qantas

😆

Enjoying our blue backyard, from one generation to the next.

Gamay Ranger April and I enjoyed a beautiful morning kayak on Sydney Harbour. Unfortunately, no dolphin or fur seal sightings.

📸 thank you @sydney_by_kayak for the cuppa, kayak and photo.

#wildsydneyharbour

The Today Show helping us find this whale: The hunt is on to find a tangled whale off the NSW South Coast, with authorities asking for the public's help to locate it.

If you spot the whale, please call ORRCA on (02) 9415 3333.

#9Today
#scicomm
#whale
#entanglement

Teachers and home schoolers- this is for you! Let's celebrate the International Day of Women and Girls in Science together next week.

 Date: Wednesday 11 February 2026 (Term 1, Week 3)
 Time: 12:00–12:45 pm
 Platform: Zoom
 Cost: Free
 
us02web.zoom.us/webinar/regi...

#teachers #school #learn

The search continues for an entangled humpback whale in New South Wales waters, Australia.

Here are some of my thoughts.

If you see a whale close to shore, contact ORRCA 02 9415 3333 or the NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service on 1300 072 757

#scicomm #whale #entanglement

NSW south coast, #Australia. If you see a humpback whale in Australian waters right now, please report it:

Call NSW National Parks and Wildlife service: 1300 072 757 (13000PARKS)

Divers, do you use flash photography? Does it impact marine life?

Find out from latest research by Harasti and Gladstone.

Scicomm: White’s Seahorse are found only in Australian waters, no where else! endemic to Australia.

#scicomm #scuba #underwater #photography #seahorse

I believe in storytelling and the power of film, and I’m proud to become an Ambassador for the Wild Earth Oceania Film Festival @wildearthoceania.

#WildEarthOceania #Storytelling #Impact #Film #ocean

An out of this world congratulations to this years @australianoftheyear and wonderful human @aussieastrokatherine!

This is SUCH a wonderful celebration of woman in science and mums in science- means a lot to me.

#ausoftheyear #astronaut #space #womeninstem #womeninscience

What next for sharks here in Sydney? Respectfully, here are my thoughts and reflections. This serves as an extension to my comments earlier this week.

#shark #sharks #sydney #bullshark #australia

Let’s keep learning together. Positive ocean news:

- Meet the Risso’s dolphin, spotted yesterday off Port Macquarie by @jodie_lowe88

- Where is that white whale?

- keep a lookout for summer Bryde’s whales in Aussie waters.

#scicom #whale #marinebiologist #australia #dolphin

Let’s work with shark scientists to develop education around shark safety to be considered in schools nationwide.

Echoing the call from @nsw_sharksmart to be #sharksmart.

And no, I personally do not support a shark cull. Let’s divert those resources to scientific research.

#shark

Continued science is essential to help us be better informed.

Shark science communication echoing the timely work of @nsw_sharksmart

#sharksmart #shark #manly #sydney #wildysydneyharbour

Wild Sydney Harbour is designed to connect community with its blue backyard. We continue to learn more together about sharks and the marine environment.

Continued science is essential to help us be better informed.

#sharksmart #shark #manly #sydney #wildysydneyharbour

And thank you!!!!!!