‘Unique’ job being offered to spot amazing sealife off the Scottish west coast

A “unique” dream job looking for whales, dolphins and turtles off the Scottish west coast is being offered.

The Hebridean Whale and Dolphin Trust wants a chief skipper for its 61-feet research vessel Silurian, which sails each season around the Highlands and Islands – and featured in the seminal BBC Blue Planet series.

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The part time job is offered with a one-year contract, starting in October – with the potential to extend – and is worth £31,468-a-year, pro rata.

HWDT is a small marine conservation charity based in Tobermory on Mull.

Its ketch, now over 40 years old, has berths for ten people – including the four crew.

“The role is a unique position, pivotal to the delivery of our core research and education programmes on board our charity owned and operated vessel, Silurian,” says the advert.

“The Chief Skipper is responsible for vessel coding and safety, recruiting and organising the seasonal crew, provisioning and the ongoing victualling of the vessel, and timetabling for Silurian.

“We are looking for somebody with a passion for sailing, our seas and wildlife, and a desire to make our vessel operations aboard Silurian the best they can be.

“We are seeking an enthusiastic self-motivator, familiar with commercial vessel coding and safety requirements, experienced in crew management, with outstanding communication skills.

“The ability to ensure boat management tasks are delivered on time and within budget, as well as being able to work with the wider team of staff, trustees, volunteers, and external contractors to deliver the ongoing requirements of this hardworking vessel is central to all tasks.

“A genuine interest in cetaceans and marine conservation is essential and an understanding of the workings of a charity/NGO would be an advantage.

“The role is part-time and split 50/50 in terms of time on board the vessel and desk-based tasks.

“The post holder will be suitably qualified to skipper a minimum of five surveys or educational trips per year, spread evenly across the main survey season April-October.

“There is the opportunity to increase the number hours further by crewing additional surveys or education trips, of which there are up to 20 trips available per year.”

The deadline for applications is August 22.

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As well as clocking up more than 6000 miles for the HWDT the Silurian has logged over 10,000 basking sharks and found Britain’s only resident killer whales.

More than 1000 volunteers have been trained in the acoustic and visual field survey techniques used onboard.

Citizen scientists also take part in monitoring Nato war games off the west coast for any effect on cetaceans.

“We believe evidence is the foundation of effective conservation. Our research has critically advanced the understanding of species that visit seasonally or are resident in the Hebrides.

“Data are provided to the Scottish Government to inform protection measures for minke whales, Risso’s dolphins, harbour porpoises, and basking sharks across Hebridean seas,” says the trust.

“Using what we have learnt, we work directly with communities to encourage stewardship of our rich seas. Our education programmes reach out to over 20,000 people each year to highlight the importance of the marine environment and encourage people to take responsibility for protecting it for future generations.”