Volunteering in the Seychelles: North Island Conservation

Our six-week adventure on the Seychelles started on 27th March 2017: We took part at a species conservation project on North Island. We could get a first glimpse of the island from the boat and it just looked beautiful! Our group leaders and the other volunteers gave us a warm welcome when we arrived. After our luggage was checked in the “ratroom” we had a look at our accommodation. It was very basic, but offered everything we needed. Afterwards one of our team leaders gave us a short introduction on the different tasks we would do within the following weeks. Marking the location of turtle nests during our daily beach patrols was one, so we were showen how to mark the nests correctly. Our team leader explained to us how we could tell the difference between an actual turtle nest, or if the turtle just dug a hole without laying any eggs. This was quite tricky in the beginning. This became one of our daily activities right from the start. There was a weekly timetable with different activities which had to be done including: Snorkeling, taking photos of different fish and shark species, rays etc., entering the collected data into a database. Relocating the original vegetation on the island, planting new seedling (we planted over 500 ones during our time in the project!) Insect control (allows to find out which nutritional value the ground can offer to the animals) Aldabra Turtle GPS: markin their location, sex and behaviour. Night patrols are another part of the weekly schedule. Night patrols involve looking for turtles on the beach. The green sea turtle only lays its eggs at night on the beach. We were lucky and could watch it a couple of times. When a turtle visits the beach at night to lay its eggs, the data of the turtle is collected. It is measured, and we had to check if the turtle already had an ID. The ID is a number for registration purposes to check where the individual turtle has been seen and if it had been to this beach before to lay its eggs. We always had a lot of fun while working and learned a lot about the island and nature conservation in general. During our free time we had the chance to explore the island. A hike to the top of Spa Hill and Bernica - unforgettable. The view was amazing! Another highlight was a BBQ and pizza on the beach at sunset. We can say that the time we spent in the project was the best time we ever had. We learned so much about North Island and nature conservation, met so many wonderful people and experienced warmth and kindness, which led to many new friendships. We do not want to miss the time in the Seychelles! (Katja and Andreas, 32 and 34 years, 6 weeks)