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When the Sweet Blue Midnights play at Fremantle's Fly By Night Club tonight, they'll have more on their minds than their music. The group hopes to kick-start a project of its keyboard player to help whales. Physicist Dr Ralph James, who plays keyboards with the band, has a theory on whale strandings. Tiny air bubbles in coastal waters during some weather conditions could confuse the whales, he says. Bubbles over a sloping beach absorb sound at the whales' sonar frequencies, Dr James has confirmed. The beach becomes a blind spot and whales may not realise their danger.
Dr James says the next step is to test beaches known for strandings. Sonar devices could then be planted offshore that could warn the whales of the menace. But Dr James, who lectures in physics at UWA, is not able to do all the testing himself. He needs money for equipment and volunteers to maintain it and keep records. When the band heard of his difficulties it decided to help. It hopes to set up a foundation to fund the project and co-ordinate the volunteers. The blues-jazz cabaret outfit has re-formed to release a new CD — Sparkle. Part of its earnings will go to the foundation, which has the support of UWA. The band has spent the past week rehearsing near
Geographe
Bay
at Dunsborough, where 350 whales were stranded in 1996.
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