VOLUNTEERS REQUIRED FOR A HUMPBACK WHALE SURVEY IN AUSTRALIA

The Cetacean Ecology and Acoustics Lab at the University of Queensland is seeking applications from volunteers for an 8 week survey of humpback whales from May 30 to July 24 this year. The survey will be conducted at Point Lookout, North Stradbroke Is, near Brisbane. It will continue the series of surveys of the east Australian migratory population of humpbacks that commenced in the early 1980s and which is one of the longest and most consistent whale surveys in the world.

This year the survey will continue the land-based count of passing whales during their northward migration to estimate relative abundance. During the peak of the migration there is likely to be approximately 60 groups of whales passing the headland daily. Individual volunteers will spend approximately five hours daily (in two shifts) counting and observing passing whales from the headland. Volunteers will get at least one day off per week, usually during bad weather.

Volunteers must be sociable as the will be expected to work and live as part of a team of 10 to 20 people with shared cooking and cleaning duties. Volunteers must organise and pay for their own way to the study site (close to Brisbane international airport) but food and accommodation (beach houses) are provided once there. As meals are communal, fussy eaters are discouraged from applying (vegetarians are fine).

Volunteers will need to be available either for the period 30 May to 10 July (6 weeks), or from 20 June to 24 July (5 weeks). (The middle part of the survey will include counts from two sites, hence the requirement for a larger number of volunteers.) This project will suit people with a background in science (including recent graduates and graduate students as well as higher level undergraduate students) keen to gain experience in cetacean survey techniques. Applicants should also be highly motivated and able to concentrate for several hours at a time. Those with previous survey experience, particularly of marine mammals, or a strong mathematical or modelling background with an interest in distance sampling techniques, will be preferred.

Applicants should reply with an email to Michael Noad outlining why they would be suitable for this survey, why they would like to participate, and any other relevant details. The email should include an attached CV and the names and contact details of two professional referees, and should be cc-ed to Rebecca Dunlop (r.dunlop@uq.edu.au). We will start to offer places after March 28 although outstanding applications will continue to be accepted after this date.

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Michael Noad   BVSc PhD

Senior Lecturer, Veterinary Anatomy

Leader, Cetacean Ecology and Acoustics Laboratory

School of Veterinary Science

The University of Queensland - Gatton Campus,

Qld 4343, Australia.

P. +61 (0)7 54601876

M. 0416270567     W. http://www.uq.edu.au/vetschool/ceal

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