MARINE MAMMAL FIN AND FLIPPER CAMP
The U. S. Navy Marine Mammal Program focuses on studying and utilizing marine mammals, primarily bottlenose dolphins and California sea lions, for various military tasks, including ship and harbor protection, mine detection and clearance, and equipment recovery. Based in San Diego, California, the program houses and trains these animals continuously. Bottlenose dolphins possess powerful biological sonar, making them exceptional at detecting objects underwater, while California sea lions excel in underwater directional hearing and low-light vision. Both species are trainable and capable of repetitive deep diving. (paraphrased from Wikipedia
Join SFDI on Wednesday, June 5th, as our club member Christina Schrant shares her experience training marine mammals for the Navy.
ABOUT CHRISTINA SCHRANT
Christina earned a bachelor’s degree in animal science from University of Florida, and became a luxury saddle sales consultant in the US and Germany. Her fluency in both English and German fueled her success, but the work was ultimately not the right fit. With the courage to start anew, she pivoted to join the Raymond James Advisor Mastery Program and become an advisor, a career that feels to her like second nature.
Her life experiences in the equestrian community inspire her insights. Her love of horses began with with her grandfather’s purchase of the Oldenburg stallion Frohwind, who then bore Calinda, the horse Christina raised, and has ridden and loved since birth.
Christina is an advocate in conservation and conducted several ocean cleanup efforts with the UF Research Scuba Club. She has had the opportunity to travel the world extensively, from hiking the mountains of Switzerland to exploring the seas of Phuket, Thailand. These experiences have given her the chance to expand her outlook on life.
As a member of South Florida Divers, Christina is delighted to have gone on some great dives with the club. She has enjoyed getting to know everybody, and looks forward to many more great times with SFDI. She will speak to us about her experience as a trainer in the Navy Marine Mammal Program.