Captain John
moved to the Outer Banks in 1984 where he and his wife, Wendy, raised their three children. He became a United States Coast Guard Master in 1998 and bought the Nags Head Dolphin Watch in 2008.
Currently, he is on the Board of Directors for the Outer Banks Center for Dolphin Research. Even after more than 30 years of living here, he still marvels at the beauty the Outer Banks has in store. He just can’t wait to show some of it off to you.
Captain Carl
is a United States Coast Guard licensed 100-ton master. He has followed the path of the Bottlenose Dolphin, Manatee, Whales, and other marine wildlife from the east coast to the Gulf of Mexico for the past twenty years.
Carl is looking forward to having you onboard!
Captain Johnny Booth
is one of the captains of the Safari tour! He is a local legend with over 62 years of experience working on the waters of the Outer Banks. He is an experienced commercial fisherman, an avid outdoorsman, and is passionate about the history and conservation of the area. He is as local as it gets with family tracing back to a shipwreck back in the 1800s and will gladly share stories about life on the island long ago, just ask!”
Captain Jeff Brown
moved to the Outer Banks in 1994. He currently holds a USCG 50 ton near coastal masters license with sailing endorsement and a British Virgin Island Boat Masters 2. He’s an avid fisherman and sailor. He enjoys every opportunity to cast the lines and embark on a new adventure.
Captain Hector Benedi
Is a Virginia native but now a proud resident of the beautiful Florida Keys, where he has called home for the past 14 years. He always looked forward to vacationing on the Outer Banks growing up. He was stuck to the Potomac River the majority of the boating season. He’s been drawn to wildlife, watersports, and anything involving being in or on the water. More recently he has been lucky enough to spend Dolphin watching season with NHDW. Currently sporting a USCG 50-ton Masters license and a Yamaha Master Technician certificate, you’re in good hands! All of which leading him to be able to share the Love of the water and local ecology with you!
2023 Crew
Jessica Weiss Taylor
has a Bachelor of Science in Marine Science from Rutgers University and a Masters of Coastal Environmental Management from Duke University. Her Master’s research focused on studying the specialized feeding behaviors of bottlenose dolphins in Sarasota, FL. She has also participated in several field research studies of bottlenose dolphins, humpback whales, Stellar sea lions, and predatory fish in Florida, South Carolina, Australia, Alaska, and New Jersey. Jessica has worked as a naturalist with the Nags Head Dolphin Watch since 2007.
In 2008, she incorporated the Outer Banks Center for Dolphin Research (OBXCDR), a non-profit dedicated to the conservation of bottlenose dolphins in the Outer Banks, and currently serves as President and lead Principal Investigator of the organization. Jessica has 6 years of teaching experience in Dare County Schools; through the OBXCDR, she has presented educational programs related to dolphin conservation to local schools and organizations. While not out on the water, Jessica lives with her husband, Jay, and their two children in Kill Devil Hills.
Sara Ghandour graduated with a Bachelor’s of Science in Marine Biology at the University of Washington in 2024. Sara, an advocate for marine mammal research and conservation, has devoted her academic and professional endeavors to understanding and researching marine ecosystems. Her journey into marine biology began as an Abalone Lab Assistant at the Padilla-Gamino Lab, University of Washington. Expanding her horizons, Sara pursued internships and volunteer opportunities to deepen her understanding and contribute to marine conservation efforts. As a NOAA Marine Mammal Laboratory Intern at the Alaska Fisheries Science Center, Sara used satellite imagery to annotate beluga and right whale sightings in Arctic waters. Sara’s commitment to environmental conservation extended to her role as a COASST Intern for the Coastal Observation and Seabird Survey Team. Additionally, her volunteer work at the Seattle Aquarium and role as a Marine Biology Student Ambassador at the University of Washington showcase her dedication to marine conservation education and outreach. Driven by her passion for marine mammal research and conservation, Sara is looking forward to working with the Outer Banks Center for Dolphin Research this summer and make a meaningful impact in the field of marine science.
Julia Collum graduated with a BS in Biology and Environmental Science in May 2024 from George Washington University. In summer 2023, she worked for the Blue Ocean Society for Marine Conservation researching humpback whales and other wildlife in the Gulf of Maine, where she rekindled her love of marine science and discovered she loved working on the water. Although she didn’t go to school near the ocean, she has had other interesting experiences in research and conservation, from interning in the Lions, Tigers, and Bears Unit at the National Zoo, to studying urban sustainability in the nation’s capital, to investigating salamander metabolism and endurance in the lab. These opportunities have helped her realize she is deeply passionate about protecting our planet’s biodiversity, as well as educating the public about ecology and the environment, so she is excited to do both with OBXCDR this summer and fall through their research and outreach programs.
Ashley Little recently graduated from the University of Georgia in May of 2024 with a BS in Biology and a minor in ecology. She is from Savannah, Ga and has been surrounded by the ocean her whole life. She decided she had a love for marine life and trying to conserve our oceans after visiting the Georgia Aquarium and watching the dolphin presentation. During her time at the University of Georgia, she has taken up many hobbies to increase her knowledge of the marine world such as volunteering at the Georgia Aquarium, joining the Ocean Initiative club at her school, and taking up scuba diving. In the summer of 2023, she went on a study away to Sapelo Island, GA to work on her own Independent research. There she conducted her research on how the health of oysters are affected by parasites and diseases. Ashley has always had a special place in her heart for dolphins and is excited to have the opportunity to work with them and educate others with the OBXCDR.
Katie Stevens is a Virginia native, and having grown up on the Chesapeake Bay, she has a long-standing love for and devotion to the ocean. From a young age, she has always been an advocate of it, whether it be oyster gardening, or creating fundraising events. This passion fueled her collegiate career, where she graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Justice, with a concentration in Environmental Law and Conservation from Virginia Commonwealth University in 2022. Her senior project focused on the scope of Environmental Justice in order to Reduce Environmental Crime. She entered this field believing that environmental crimes were an under-researched and overlooked area of criminal justice, even though these crimes correlate with ecological problems that threaten the planet’s livelihood. She heavily focused on the negligence of not having protective legislation for elasmobranchs (sharks, rays, and skates). She took this knowledge and held the position of chief research scientist at the Coastal Marine Education and Research Academy in Clearwater, FL, where she spent the summer of 2023 catching and tagging sharks and rays. Katie’s deep devotion to the ocean and conservation has always driven her towards sharks, and she is eager to broaden her horizons with Nags Head Dolphin Watch and educate, explore, and foster excitement for the ocean in others!