Hi everyone! I am Julia Lopez Delgado, I come from Gran Canaria and am currently studying Environmental Biology at the Autonomous University of Barcelona. As part of my degree I had the option to go on a placement for the summer... and what better place than the RSPB to learn?
I’ve been helping for a few weeks so far and I have been lucky enough to visit work at Arne, Radipole Lake and Chesil Beach in that time. Therefore I have been able to do varied jobs, this is something I’m really enjoying as at this point I still don’t know what field I want to work in and so this is the perfect opportunity for me to try lots of different things and hopefully I’ll discover my passion. At Radipole and Arne I have been working with children and trying to get them interested in nature (more about that in my next blog!) whilst at Chesil Beach the work has been based on the conservation of the little terns. I’m especially interested in the scientific side of this job, so working on the conservation of the little terns has been amazing.
The little terns are a fascinating species that migrates from the West African coast every summer to lay eggs in various British sites. The only colony in the South West of England is found at Chesil Beach! It is the smallest of the terns and one of the rarest species of the UK, making it particularly vulnerable against predators such as gulls, kestrels and foxes. It is included in the Amber List, it had been experiencing a alarming decline until the RSPB drew a scheme to protect them in 2009. The arduous efforts of the RSPB are giving them a brighter future. Last year, 1200 hours of volunteering resulted in 60 beautiful fledglings: an all-time record that resulted of the commitment and hard work of all the team. The programme includes a 24 hour monitoring, in which the predators are scared away and the nests are guarded, allowing the population to be accurately studied and protected. As you can see in the picture above, these birds are brilliant at camouflaging themselves.
Last Tuesday I had my first 8 hour shift, I feel so passionate about protecting them from predators that I wouldn’t stop listening to their song and picking up on any signs of danger. I wouldn't even stop for lunch because I was scared that a kestrel might take one of the little chicks away! Fortunately, no chicks were taken so I was able to sleep well after hours of running around the beach.
I’m going to be here until Mid August and blogging every week about my experiences, so watch this space to see what I get up to. You can be an RSPB volunteer too! Visit rspb.org.uk/volunteering or contact dorset.volunteering@rspb.org.uk to find out more about how to join me.
Julia