Opportunity to take roles on wild side
Big Boy knows summer is coming as his favourite rock is warming up. The 38-year-old tuatara is gearing up for the summer influx of visitors to Central Energy Trust Wildbase Recovery and the longer opening hours.
To help him greet and guide visitors, he and his staff are seeking more volunteers.
Wildbase Recovery manager Chris Smith says it is a fun place to volunteer and helpers have the opportunity to get up close to the permanent and recuperating native wildlife and learn about them.
There’s a cool crowd of staff and existing volunteers, some of whom have been at the centre since it opened five years ago at Victoria Esplanade in Palmerston North.
Wildbase has a small, paid frontof-house team, and the volunteer programme is another way for the public to be involved in Wildbase, Smith says. Entry is free.
Former science teacher Barbara Arnold has been a Wildbase volunteer for more than four years.
She enjoys the company of staff and fellow volunteers and talking to the birds and watching them.
Arnold says she can get whiplash watching the birds, as they can fly around the aviary in three seconds.
The biggest part of her role is pointing out where the residents are — the pa¯teke (brown teal) are particularly good at hiding in plain sight.
“There’s always interesting things to see, and there’s lots of visitors.”
Some have come from as far away as Europe, North America and South America.
A lot of people get excited as they have never seen a tuatara before.
Support officer Bex Ingram says volunteers don’t need to know about wildlife as they will be taught. They
need to commit to two-hour shifts, ideally once a week over summer.
Wildbase Recovery provides shelter and care for native wildlife recovering after treatment at Massey University’s Wildbase Hospital.
It also has resident whio (blue duck), kereru¯, korimako and ka¯ka¯.
From December 16 to February 3, it will be open from 10am-4pm Tuesdays to Saturdays, but closed on public holidays.
Applications to become a volunteer close on October 31. Apply at wildbaserecovery.co.nz or email info@wildbaserecovery.co.nz.