Running seabird expeditions
Everything that has been discussed in the Setting up a new seabird ringing project can be applied to expedition ringing (e.g. where an overnight visit is needed), but there are other considerations that need to be taken into account. Many islands with seabird populations will have been visited before, so it is worth trying to find out as much as you can from anyone who has visited your potential site before starting to plan your trip. Talking to other experienced seabird ringers / expedition leaders before organising an expedition will also be incredibly useful and might highlight issues or best practice ideas that you haven’t considered.
Teams
Seabird expeditions tend to take place on remote islands and as such, tend to require longer trips, usually a week or more. As such, they are likely to need a bigger team than day trips, potentially with some team members changing over part way through the trip. Teams will need to be balanced to ensure you have enough suitably qualified ringers to run the trips and that there are training opportunities for all participants.
If you are offering places to people you don’t know, you may wish to consider using an application process to choose your team members. If you are not sure if someone will fit with the team or be a team player, and there is no opportunity to get to know them a little before offering them a place, don’t be afraid to say no. A team member who is disruptive or struggles badly with the conditions will affect the whole team. You may wish to organise a physical or virtual get together before a trip to introduce team members and assess likely team dynamics.
On longer expeditions, it is even more important to consider the fitness / physical abilities of your team and to consider the overall makeup of your team. There is usually no way for a team member to leave an expedition early if they feel uncomfortable or out of their depth and arguments or interpersonal issues will add another challenge that could be avoided.
You may want to select people with specific skills or the willingness to carry out a task others might not want to do. A less physically able ringer who is medically trained and who is willing to be the designated first aider on a trip, might get priority over an inexperienced, but very physically fit, ringer for instance. Also consider taking people with practical skills in areas other than ringing if this is appropriate to your situation. For instance, if you plan to undertake repair work on a bothy on site, someone with building skills could be very useful to have with you.
Briefing the team
A full and detailed briefing, ahead of the trip taking place, is essential to ensure all participants are properly prepared and won’t encounter any nasty surprises when they get there. Expedition ringing isn’t for everyone and all participants should be thoroughly prepared and informed, ideally before even signing up for the trip. Try not to scare your team members off, but be frank & honest about what they can expect. Although this list is not exhaustive, briefings could include the following:
- The conditions on the island - in terms of the terrain - they will be living and working in. If they are going to be working at height, check that they are comfortable with that and, where possible, offer alternatives (working lower down in a boulder colony for instance) for those that are not.
- The camping arrangements and what facilities are (or, more importantly, are not) available on site. The lack of toilet or washing facilities should not come as a surprise to anyone when they arrive on the island!
- The impact bad weather can have on the expedition so people can plan ahead and bring appropriate equipment and spare clothes. Forewarn your team members that bad weather could delay you leaving the island so that anyone who takes prescription medication will be suitably prepared.
- The fact that there will be no shop to nip and buy a bar of chocolate or some new waterproof trousers if they forget to bring theirs and no pharmacy should they run out of, or forget, prescription medication. Team members need to be extremely well prepared before they leave home!
- If the trip involves a long boat ride to get to an island, giving your team an idea of how long the boat journey will take will allow those who suffer from seasickness to be appropriately prepared.
- A lack of mobile signal or internet access on site could be an issue for some participants so make the team aware if this is the case.
It is also important to highlight that seabird ringing can involve very long days in the field with activities late at night or early morning, working in close proximity to fellow ringers, with no time off (usually, unless bad weather stops play) and little opportunity to get away from the rest of the team. This might be a new challenge for inexperienced ringers and one they should be aware of in advance.
During the trip
If you plan to split the ringing team into smaller groups while on site, allocate more experienced ringers to the role of ‘team leaders’. Where possible, allocate these roles before you leave for the trip and make sure the ringers are comfortable with what they are being asked to do and have the necessary permit endorsements to allow them to carry out the ringing activities unsupervised. If any of these ‘team leaders’ is a C-permit holder, you will also need to check that they have a ‘Helper’ endorsement if they will be supervising other ringers who do not have the permit endorsements for the ringing being undertaken.
Creating rotas and delegating responsibility for certain tasks will help to ensure that the trip organiser doesn’t have to do absolutely everything. There is a real risk of the organiser burning out if they try to shoulder all of the tasks as well as all of the responsibility for the success of the trip and the safety of the team.
Different team members will have different strengths and weaknesses - be aware of these and allocate roles during the trip accordingly. Not everyone will be comfortable at the highest levels of a colony for instance - they should not be forced to operate where they are scared! Ensure you have a non-threatening and open-door culture that enables all participants to feel comfortable discussing any issues they have. Do not make fun of weaknesses e.g. a fear of heights or needing adapted kit to fit large rings, even if not directly related to a specific person, as this might prevent a participant from sharing that they are uncomfortable in a given situation. For new team members, consider having a mentor for them of the same sex. There can be issues like dealing with sanitary products that not everyone is comfortable talking about openly. The BTO has a code of conduct which applies to all of our volunteers (including bird ringers) as well as to members of staff.
Health & Safety
Seabird islands / colonies can be inherently dangerous places, with high potential for injury if precautions aren’t taken. Basic situations, such as small cuts or drinking dirty water would not be an issue on the mainland, but can quickly become dangerous on a remote island that is a long way from a medical facility. Anything from sunburn to broken limbs (from slips or falls) can and do happen, even when you are prepared, so always be alert to risks. Try to do everything possible to mitigate risks and plan for the occasion when accidents do happen e.g. how will you evacuate someone with a broken leg, and then get their car load of participants home afterwards etc. Every site is different and you should have a site-specific plan and risk assessment in place before you undertake the trip.
The following is guidance that may be helpful, but not all will be relevant to every site.
Risk assessments and insurance
It is advisable to complete a detailed risk assessment prior to the trip and to share this document with participants. You may wish to ask them to confirm in writing that they have read and understood the risk assessment before the trip commences. Although all ringers are covered by the BTO Public Liability insurance and Personal Accident insurance, you may wish to take out other insurance as appropriate to the trip e.g. to insure against the cancellation of the trip. Neither of the BTO insurance policies covers the team leader of the activity from personal liability, so you may wish to consider obtaining bespoke insurance for this.
Medical considerations
Most seabird islands are remote and will have no easy access to medical facilities in case of an emergency. Always ensure the Coastguard is aware of your plans and knows when you will be on the island. If the trip is more than a few days long, arrange to ‘check in’ with the Coastguard at a set interval and have a plan in place for what they should do if you miss a contact. If you don’t have anyone with medical training with you, it might be worth having a contact for a local doctor, for non-emergency advice. Arrange this with them in advance so they are aware of the trip and know you may call. If at all possible, try to have a trained first aider with you throughout the trip, and you should always have a well stocked first aid kit available. You may need to have a satellite phone, VHF/UHF or a satellite communicator that sends & receives messages anywhere in the world and can send an automated SOS. VHF can be used to contact passing boats and or the Coastguard in an emergency; it is useful to know which VHF channel(s) are used locally.
It is advisable to ask team members to provide you with details of any medical conditions they feel you should be aware of and next of kin details. This can be done confidentially by asking them to put the details in a sealed envelope with their name on it, to be kept by a designated person (ideally a trained first aider), and only opened in the case of a medical emergency (a second person should be aware of where these are in case the designated person is the one to need medical assistance). These envelopes can be returned to participants at the end of the trip. Anyone with a specific medical condition that could become an issue should be encouraged to discuss this with the organisers / first aider before the trip starts. All team members should ensure that they have a sufficient supply of prescription medication to last the duration of the trip (including any unforeseen extensions). If medication needs to be kept under certain temperature conditions, this should be discussed with the trip organiser prior to the trip to ascertain if this will be possible.
Always be prepared that the trip might have to end early, or be extended, due to weather conditions or a serious incident on site such as injury to key members of the trip, and ensure you have enough resources to cope with extra days on the island if necessary. To this end, you should have an emergency evacuation plan in place prior to the start of a trip.
Sanitation
Most seabird sites have no sanitation or washing facilities. Be conscious of keeping equipment and people as clean as possible and ensure participants are aware of the potential of disease transfer from birds. Access to medicine such as antibiotics is not simple on a remote island, so small injuries (e.g. infected cuts) can become much more serious in this situation. Where necessary, brief team members about the need to check regularly for ticks and advise them to carry tick removers (and know how to use them). At some sites you will be required to bring off all solid human waste and sanitary products.
Emergency protocols
As well as a detailed risk assessment, you should have a well-designed emergency plan in place, covering everything from medical situations, boat failure, loss of a key member of the team, how to contact the Coastguard, to a complete evacuation of the island and cancellation of the expedition. All key members of the team should be familiar with this plan and it should be easily accessible should it need to be consulted during the trip. Multiple team members should also have access to the contact details for the boat skipper in case of an emergency.
Personal wellbeing
Brief the team to look out for each other and try to make sure all team members (including the organiser) get enough sleep / food / water etc. While the team’s physical wellbeing is essential, looking after the team’s mental wellbeing is equally as important. Seabird colonies can be overwhelming for some people and tensions between team members can run high when the team gets tired. While some people might struggle with not having any time alone, lone working on islands is risky and, for the most part, should be discouraged.
Be aware that some people have unacknowledged smoking and alcohol addictions. Manage expectations on what will be included in communal food rations, so they can cater for their own needs outside of this. Also communicate what is expected re alcohol consumption. People experiencing unexpected withdrawal symptoms can become quite emotional and tough to deal with, especially in group/team scenarios.
Make sure all participants are aware of how tired they will be at the end of the trip and how this might affect their ability to drive home. Car sharing, with multiple people swapping driving duties can help where possible. Some participants might want to think about staying locally for an extra night in a B&B for instance before driving home.
Tides and weather
Make sure you, and the team, always know what time high / low tide is if this impacts on your ability to get into or out of a colony safely. Understanding the impact of inclement weather on tidal ranges is also essential to keep the team safe. If in doubt, leave plenty of time to get off beaches / out of colonies before the tide cuts team members off. If you can take a radio with you and can get a signal, listen to the Shipping Forecast daily and write down the forecast to discuss with the team how it will impact on each day’s activities. On a VHF, you can get the forecast from the local Coastguard; check times they do this beforehand. If you have a phone signal, they are happy to give an update at any time (unless dealing with an emergency).
Know your limitations
Unless you are local to the area where the trip is being undertaken, you will not be as knowledgeable or as experienced as someone who lives there. Seek out and listen to the expertise of locals, particularly the boat drivers as they know best what is and isn’t possible in terms of landing on islands, travelling in less than ideal conditions and so on.
It isn’t just the health and safety of the team that you will want to consider. Seabird habitats should be left in pristine condition which means taking all your rubbish with you and disposing of everything responsibly, including faeces & sanitary products if there is no way to deal with this on the island itself.
Food and water supplies
It is essential that you plan properly to ensure that you have adequate food and water supplies to last for the duration of the trip and have remembered all the cooking equipment (and fuel for that equipment) that you will need. One of the best ways to do this is to have a plan for each day’s meals, shop for this plan and stick to it. That way, you shouldn’t run out of anything midway through a trip. It would be wise to make sure participants know what food is reserved for meals and what they can snack on so that no one accidentally eats ingredients needed for a main meal; be clear in your pre-trip advice if people will need to bring their own snacks! If participants are changing over mid trip, someone in the oncoming team might be able to shop for fresh food for the next week, but ensure you have a way of contacting them if the shopping list changes and always check that the person you ask can afford to do this! Anyone with specific dietary requirements should discuss these with the organisers in advance of the trip and may need to take some food of their own with them.
One of the most difficult things to judge is how much water you will need for the trip. It is imperative that you have enough water for the whole trip, or a way of filtering water sourced from natural springs on the island. Advise participants to have multiple water bottles with them too as it is easy to run out of water on long days in the field in hot conditions.
Always take more food and water than you think you will need. If the weather takes a turn for the worse and you cannot leave the island when you planned to, you may be stuck there for another couple of days before it is safe for a boat to land. You will need to have enough resources, both food and water (and generator fuel), to cope with this eventuality.
Access
Virtually all seabird expeditions are to islands, which means you will almost certainly need to charter a boat, either to do multiple day runs to take you, fetch you and do team changeovers, or to stay with you for the duration of the trip. Depending on landing access, this may need to be a boat large enough to carry all the team and kit, but which also carries a smaller RIB to ferry everyone from the boat to the landing site. The loading and unloading of kit to and from the boat, and transporting it to the location you will be using as your base camp, can be onerous and hard work so it is worth spending time creating a plan for a safe landing spot and for ferrying the equipment before you go.
You may also need to have access to your own RIB during the expedition to reach certain areas of the island or to travel to neighbouring islands, which will require someone in your team to have a licence to drive such a vessel. You may also need to consider whether you need climbers or ladders to reach some parts of the island or colonies.
Equipment
Seabird islands are remote places that you will most likely be on for a week or more, with no way of getting supplies to you other than in an emergency. You therefore need to be very well prepared and be sure that you have all the essentials with you. If your trip is more than a week long, and you have new team members joining part way through, you will have the option of asking them to bring anything that you have forgotten, but this should not be relied upon!
It is essential to provide participants with a suggested list of kit (clothing, waterproofs, camping equipment, ringing kit, head torch, spare batteries, book etc) that they will definitely need and a list of additional things they might want to take with them. You may want to phrase this as a suggested kit list though, rather than a definitive list, or you risk being blamed if someone doesn’t have something they need! If there is an option of having somewhere to dry clothes and boots if they get soaking wet, this would be advantageous but if that isn’t an option, you will need to advise everyone to take enough clothing with them to ensure they always have something dry to wear. Where possible, the camping equipment everyone brings should be suitable for the conditions likely to be met. Tents should be sufficiently robust to withstand gale force winds (e.g. four season) which can occur even during the summer. Temperatures can also be extreme and a three- or four-season sleeping bag is advised.
If you are taking a generator with you, ensure you have enough fuel to last for the duration of the trip and, if possible, have someone able to repair it if it breaks. Solar chargers are useful for charging phones (if you get signal) if you don’t have electricity or only have minimal use of a generator.
Smocks are useful for keeping rings / notebooks / pliers etc in the pockets in boulder colonies but it is wise to encourage participants to keep their pliers on string round their neck, particularly if working in a boulder colony as they are easy to drop and lose between rocks. Always take more rings with you than you think you will need!
Make sure you have all the trapping methods you could want, with spares for everything (batteries, net repair kit, new wire, extra guy cord etc). There are a range of methods available for catching seabirds and it is frustrating to be stuck without them if the one method you brought with you doesn’t work.
Cost
Seabird expeditions are very expensive! A two- or three-week trip can cost thousands of pounds, most of which will be to cover boat charter. Some trips will need a boat just to drop off and collect team members, but others will require boats to stay for the duration of the trip, adding hugely to the cost. It is worth taking costs into consideration when thinking about the long-term viability of the expedition. If the cost of the trip will be prohibitively high, and will mean it won’t be able to run regularly (every year, every two or three years), should you run it at all? You will also need to consider and make sure all participants are aware of the refund policy if a trip has to be cancelled or cut short; some essential upfront costs may have been paid already and are not refundable. You may find that some insurances or credit cards can help cover these refund costs if needed. Look for grants to support your work. It is often easier to get grants for equipment rather than annual one off costs such as for the boat charter. The SOC and Seabird Group are good places to start, but the landowner and or local societies may also be sources of support (see Funding opportunities for other sources of grants).
Other monitoring / tasks
If you are visiting a remote island that is unlikely to have been surveyed before, it can be incredibly valuable to collect colony counts for the species on site. Staff organising the Seabird Monitoring Programme (SMP) or in your Statutory Nature Conservation Body should be able to advise whether any counts are carried out on site and, if not, what species they would like you to prioritise for counts if you can’t cover all of them. They will also advise on how to submit your count data when you return, and whether it is worthwhile setting up some long term fixed point count plots. The Seabird Monitoring Handbook summarises current seabird counting and monitoring methods, relevant to British and Irish colonies, and contains step-by-step procedures for each species for censusing/monitoring populations and for assessing productivity. It would be worth consulting this guide before your trip, particularly for species that may not be straightforward to count e.g. Storm Petrels. Data can be entered here although you must have a BTO user account first.
If you have team members skilled in other taxa (plants, moths, butterflies, mammals etc.), consider allowing them to survey for other things if there is time, and encourage them to submit their records to the county recorder or local records centre at the end of the trip. Another very useful task you can do on remote islands is to collect rubbish that is washed up on beaches; please ensure you remove any rubbish you collect and dispose of it responsibly.
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