Naturalists
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Mary Bio to come. |
Joan Bio to come. |
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Tammy Hello, this is my second season with Vancouver Whale Watch. Hailing from the East coast, sea kayaking with the whales and exploring the beautiful shorelines have brought me across Canada to the West coast. My summers for the past 10 years have been spent on the water. My passion for unpredictable marine wildlife encounters and the ever changing dances of the ocean keep me coming back. I have guided canoe trips, taught snowboarding and rock climbing; it is easy to see that my passion is… the great Outdoors. My indoor passion is teaching Yoga, which is even better when done on a beach, on a cliff or in the forest. I work in the office and on the boats so you may meet me as your Naturalist or online when you make your reservation. |
Susanne This is my second season with Vancouver Whale Watch and I have to say I have so much fun being a naturalist! I spend my days with eagles, seals, sea lions and whales… and I love it! I’ve always appreciated nature and wildlife but I developed a passion at a very young age for the ocean and marine wildlife. As a child, I would sit in my stroller on the ferries and just stare at the ocean the entire trip. On my first visit to the Vancouver Aquarium I was immediately hooked on orcas as soon as I saw Hyak, Finna, and Bjossa. Following my passion for wildlife and nature, I enrolled and recently graduated from the Fish, Wildlife, and Recreation Program at BCIT where I studied environmental and wildlife conservation as well as all aspects of wildlife found in BC. When I’m not at Vancouver Whale Watch, I volunteer my time at OWL, a non-profit organization which helps rehabilitate sick and injured birds of prey. I also enjoy spending time in the outdoors throughout this beautiful province. |
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Leslie Bio to come. |
Sandy Bio to come. |
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Jasmine Hey folks! This is my fourth season with Vancouver Whale Watch and I must admit, I've loved every last minute of it. Every trip feels like a mini vacation. I've been lucky enough to meet people from all over the world and show them everything from absolutely brilliant scenery to - of course - all kinds of marine wildlife. My heart still races a little bit when we dip the hydrophone in the water and get to listen to the language of the orcas - live! Best trip ever?? Hmm... That would have to be when a juvenile harbour seal escaped the jaws of his transient orca predators by jumping on the back of Lightship. Transients aren't stupid, they knew exactly where he went and hung around for a while trying to trick the seal into jumping off the boat. It turns out the great hunters of the sea don't give up easily. When I'm not on the water I'm working towards a degree in environmental education, volunteering as a marine invertebrate teacher at the Vancouver Aquarium and hiking up to catch fantabulous views above Vancouver. . |
Vanessa This is my third season working with Vancouver Whale Watch although I have to admit being out on the water surrounded by amazing scenery and wildlife hardly ever feels like work! I finished my a Bachelor of Science degree, specializing in Marine Biology from Simon Fraser University in 2004 and then spent a year abroad working on boats and as a research assistant in Australia. I was part of the Shark Bay Ecosystem Research Project and spent the majority of my time catching, tagging and researching Loggerhead Turtles and Green Sea Turtles. I also had the chance to assist on projects involving dolphins, dugongs, sting rays and tiger sharks! Upon returning to Canada, I spent a little bit of time working at the Vancouver Aquarium and volunteering in the invertebrate lab, before starting with Vancouver Watch in 2006. Since then, I have gone back to school and earned a second degree in Education. During the school year you can find me in the classroom teaching Science but as soon as summer rolls around I will be jumping ship… onto a whale watching boat! |
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Michelle Bio to come. |
Alex Hi there! This is my first season with Vancouver Whale Watch, although I have been working in the field of marine biology and conservation for several years now. I'm originally from the UK but have been lucky enough to travel far and wide with my career, experiencing some amazing wildlife in some amazing places! So far I have worked with great white sharks, basking sharks and reef sharks, stingrays, sea turtles, dolphins, African penguins, seals and even hard corals. I have led research expeditions in South Africa, managed a marine lab in the Maldives, worked in a Zoo in the UK, and surveyed turtle nesting beaches in the Mediterranean and Florida! I am now very happy to be watching whales along one of the most beautiful coastlines in the world. I'm enjoying getting to know the orcas individually, and trying to understand their behaviour, and I just love being out on the boat all day! The most exciting/scariest moment of my career to date? Well, despite working with top predators and on wild oceans I would have to say it was giving a presentation to a room full of leading international scientists at a conference!! |
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