Author and filmmaker Andrew Stevenson’s humpback whale research used to have a certain informality. When the weather was right, he would head out to observe nature’s most elusive marine creatures.Not anymore.Mr Stevenson has formed The Humpback Whale Research Foundation, Bermuda, in an effort to take his research to the next level.And the organisation now has a dedicated vessel to aid its research, a brand new boat donated by Capital G.“For Bermuda, a series of tiny islands in the middle of the ocean, our marine environment is potentially one of our greatest assets,” Mr Stevenson said. “It is important to understand and conserve this resource for future generations.”The Foundation gives him more credibility when working with scientific organisations and makes it easier to raise funds for the work, he said.Mr Stevenson made a film about his research, ‘Where the Whales Sing’; a companion book by the same name soon followed. An important part of his research has been matching photographs of whale flukes taken in Bermuda from year to year. The pattern of a whale fluke is unique to each whale and acts as an identifier. Mr Stevenson collected 208 fluke identifications last year and has been able to prove that at least 30 were repeat visitors to the Island.“The outcome after ten years of intense effort will be the largest data set of fluke IDs obtained in the middle of the ocean and will be one of the largest data sets of fluke IDs from a single location anywhere in the world,” said Mr Stevenson. “This database of fluke IDs will be invaluable to marine scientists for decades to come and will put Bermuda on the cetacean science map. In time, and with continuation of this dedicated scientific data gathering and analysis, Bermuda will become an important centre of international whale research.”As a mid-ocean platform, Bermuda provides a unique window into the lives of the humpbacks. Mr Stevenson is not a marine biologist. His advantage compared to experts in the field is his location.“In the winter when the whales are migrating past, we can have big waves and strong winds,” he said. “You might be in shore for two weeks trying to get out to study them. By living here I can go out whenever I want.”As a result several scientists have asked to work with him and share his data. Waters 200 miles off Bermuda were declared a marine mammal sanctuary last September and a sister sanctuary to the Stellwagen Marine Mammal Sanctuary outside Boston, Massachusetts. Mr Stevenson hopes to establish another sister sanctuary with Silver Bank in Dominican Republic waters.Mr Stevenson will give a presentation about his foundation on March 19 at the Bermuda Underwater Exploration Institute from 6.30pm to 8.30pm. Tickets are $25 from www.bdatix.bm .