Turtles conservation in Vanuatu
| country: | Vanuatu |
| departures: | 2008: 27 Oct, 24 Nov 2009: 5 Jan, 2 Feb, 2 Mar |
| price: | From £1160 (4 weeks) - £1955 (12 weeks) excluding flights. We can offer advice on flights from the UK |
the amazing things you'll be doing
Save the Turtles in Vanuatu. For centuries the turtle has been a key figure and symbol of Pacific island cultures and traditions. But, despite the traditional controls on turtle use in many Pacific countries, Hawksbill turtle populations have been severely depleted and as a result have been listed as a critically endangered species by the IUCN.
As a volunteer with this project you will have the opportunity to work side by side with community members as they begin nesting surveys in Vanuatu. In addition to helping with the nesting survey you will also get the chance to try your hand at many other activities that occur in the village, like reef surveys, teaching at the village school, collecting and cooking local food, or paddling a dugout canoe.
And in your spare time you might get a chance to snorkel on tropical reefs, learn to dive, or just sit and ‘storian’ with your new friends in the village.
In the middle of the season (December - January), when the nesting is at its peak, most of the work will revolve around the nightly nesting surveys. This will involve walking sectors of the beach to locate nesting turtles. Data will then be collected from those turtles, they will be tagged, and their nests will be protected.
Towards the late part of the season (February) the nesting will diminish thus reducing the focus on nightly patrols. At this time there will be more emphasis on monitoring and assisting the emergence of hatchlings and determining the success of nests. There also might be time to once again take part in the additional activities that take place at the start of the season.
As a volunteer with this project you will have the opportunity to work side by side with community members as they begin nesting surveys in Vanuatu. In addition to helping with the nesting survey you will also get the chance to try your hand at many other activities that occur in the village, like reef surveys, teaching at the village school, collecting and cooking local food, or paddling a dugout canoe.
And in your spare time you might get a chance to snorkel on tropical reefs, learn to dive, or just sit and ‘storian’ with your new friends in the village.
a day in a life of a volunteer
During the early part of the project (October - November) we will be concentrating on setting the project up (e.g. surveying the beach to determine length, determine how much of the beach can be properly surveyed, dividing those parts of the beach into sectors, building predator excluders for the nests, etc.). During this part of the season there may be time to do other things such as reef surveys, capture and tagging of turtles on their feeding grounds and possibly other faunal and floral surveys. In the middle of the season (December - January), when the nesting is at its peak, most of the work will revolve around the nightly nesting surveys. This will involve walking sectors of the beach to locate nesting turtles. Data will then be collected from those turtles, they will be tagged, and their nests will be protected.
Towards the late part of the season (February) the nesting will diminish thus reducing the focus on nightly patrols. At this time there will be more emphasis on monitoring and assisting the emergence of hatchlings and determining the success of nests. There also might be time to once again take part in the additional activities that take place at the start of the season.
volunteer travel - what's it all about?
Are you are looking for an adventurous trip with a purpose, or on a gap year or career break? If you want to make a difference in some of the world’s most important conservation areas - and in community projects - then volunteer trips are for you! Volunteers tend to have a sense of adventure, and come from a range of different backgrounds and from all over the world. Edward Abbey said 'sentiment without action is the ruin of the soul'.
how this holiday makes a difference
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The last 50 to 100 years have seen a marked increase in the killing of all age classes of turtles for their eggs, shells, and meat. Hawksbill turtle populations have been severely depleted and as a result have been listed as a critically endangered species by the IUCN.
In Vanuatu a grassroots effort to stop this decline has sprouted up in rural communities across the country. The Vanua-Tai (meaning of land and sea) Natural Resource Monitors is a national network of community members that are working within their communities to institute bans on the harvest of turtles and their eggs. As a volunteer with this project you will have the opportunity to work side by side with community members as they begin the first year of a long-term nesting survey. This first year will be a real learning experience for the community as they learn just how many turtles use this nesting beach and how to manage the survey for themselves. |
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