Student devotes studies to marine animals

Despite her land-locked position, IU senior Sabena Siddiqui has dedicated her studies and her life to marine mammals and the effects of captivity.

In 2010, at the age of 21, Siddiqui started the American Cetacean Society Student Coalition at IU, part of a national organization, Siddiqui said. 

Since then Siddiqui has worked on many internships and studied marine animals and their behaviors.

But her interest in sea animals hasn’t just started in recent years.

“It started with how I started my career,” she said. “I’ve been obsessed with whales and dolphins since I was a toddler. Then in 2010, I applied to the Mote Marine Laboratory as an intern. When I got it, I was shocked.”

The internship launched her career, despite the disapproval from her family, she said.
“I’ve had a lot of people discourage me,” she said. “But my worst fear is regret. So I borrowed money from my aunt and bought a plane ticket to Florida without telling my dad.”

From there, Siddiqui worked at the marine laboratory and lived with an artist who gave her free rent as long as she took care of the animals while she was away at art shows.
Though she enjoyed the internship, she said, it was hard for her to work with marine animals that were in captivity.

Her interest in studying animals in captivity came after watching the movie “The Cove.” The movie, she said, inspired her to look deeper into the study of marine mammals.

“I contacted the American Cetacean Society and presented some of my research to them. They told me to write a proposal and see if I got accepted into the conference,” Siddiqui said. “I was accepted.”

After being accepted and presenting at the conference, Siddiqui said she gained confidence in her work.

“The following year, I was approached about starting the first student coalition,” she said.

The ACSSC at IU advocates for many things, even though it’s so far from the ocean, in Indiana. One of their campaigns is for sustainable seafood.

“It’s a pretty important issue,” she said. “We hand out seafood watch cards, so when you’re purchasing seafood it shows you what some of the alternatives are.”

In addition to the 2,000 seafood cards the organization has handed out, they also bring in many guest speakers and films, as well as test the Jordan River, Siddiqui said.
“We test biological components and we show that all sources lead to the ocean,” she said. “They’re all connected.”

The ACSSC also takes a stand against the captivity of marine mammals by handing out pamphlets on campus.

When Siddiqui finishes her time at IU, she plans to continue her studies in graduate school, even though the programs are very competitive, she said. At the moment, she’s applying for funding.

Siddiqui said she believes her passions will take her far in her studies of marine mammals and what captivity does to them.

“During one of my internships I was told I was too passionate to be doing research,” she said. “The passion drives the insanity to be able to do this kind of work.”