A Day in the Life of a Living Seas Volunteer · 2017. 10. 2. · A Day in the Life of a Living Seas...
Transcript of A Day in the Life of a Living Seas Volunteer · 2017. 10. 2. · A Day in the Life of a Living Seas...
A Day in the Life of a Living Seas Volunteer
Each day is different for a Living Seas volunteer at Cardigan Bay Marine Wildlife Centre.
You could start your day on the harbour wall watching bottlenose dolphins only to be
taking part in educational activities, raising public awareness in the afternoon - all topped
off with a beach clean in the sunshine!
Manning the Visitor Centre
(9am-11pm)
Our visitor centre is open from 9am-5pm
daily and is a typical part of a volunteer’s day.
Volunteers provide a friendly and
informative visitor experience by sharing
their knowledge of the local wildlife and
recent sightings of Cardigan Bay’s ‘big three’.
This inspires our visitors to value the sea.
Some visitors might book onto a boat trip – a
process that volunteers organise, along with
answering phone enquiries. Volunteers also
help too sell merchandise from the shop
which contributes towards supporting the
centre’s work.
Data Entry and Updating Sightings (11am-12pm)
All the data collected by volunteers has to be input into our databases and sightings are
added to our GIS map. Once data is inputted it can be analysed and used for various
research projects . Updating the websites sightings section and posting sightings updates
on social media is an integral part of communicating with supporters and encouraging
them to support CBMWC and contribute towards marine conservation.
Land Based Survey (1pm-3pm)
CBMWC works with Ceredigion County Council with
our volunteers conducting daily surveys (7am-7pm)
from New Quay Harbour Wall. These surveys are a
particularly exciting part of our day – being faced with
the possibility of spotting bottlenose dolphins, harbour
porpoise, Atlantic grey seals and plenty of marine
birds. Working outdoors isn’t always glamorous, but
braving the wind and rain for an hour only to
experience the sight of a mother and her calf surfacing,
a group leaping and feeding, or an inquisitive seal
bottling in the water always reminds you of your
passion for wildlife! Volunteers help to record
environmental data, the species sighted, number and
behaviour of any marine megafauna spotted.
Day 2
Boat Based Survey (11am-1pm)
When the sea conditions are suitable, volunteers have
the opportunity to act as on board researcher on a
Dolphin Survey Boat Trip helping to spot the Cardigan
Bay big three and in the summer some more exotic
visitors such as sunfish. Volunteers record vital
environmental and species information and can also
interact with passengers answering their questions
and telling them more about the centre and the work
that we do. Sightings aren’t guaranteed as they are
wild animals but it’s never a boring trip with the
experienced skippers entertaining the passengers!
Community Engagement
(2pm-4pm)
Bottlenose dolphins around the UK can grow up to four
meters long, Atlantic grey seals can dive to depths of 300
metres! These facts can be use to fascinate members of
the public and informative talks, interactive activities
crafts and games can also be part of your day here at the
wildlife centre. Community engagements activities are a
way for CBMWC volunteers to pass on their knowledge
and act as ambassadors for the marine environment.
CBMWC run a range of events including a monthly
Wildlife Watch group and summer holiday activities for
family's as well as offering talks for local schools and
groups. These events are particularly worthwhile when
children show a passion for marine wildlife, they may
even go on to study conservation later in life!
Beach Clean (4pm-5pm)
Cigarettes, fishing nets and plastic are all items that have
been found during our beach cleans! These give us an
opportunity to raise awareness of the importance of
picking up your litter and it’s surprising when you go out
on a busy day how many members of the public offer to
give you a helping hand! Some friendly competition
between volunteers to find the most litter always results
in large numbers of surprising objects being discovered .
Author
A big thank you to Sarah Torode a previous Living Seas Volunteer from
April to July 2015 for her insight into the world of CBMWC volunteers.