Animal Keeper/Presenter vacancy at Seaview Wildlife for 2011 season

An opportunity has arisen to join the dynamic Animal Care Team at the Island's largest, multi-award winning wildlife attraction - this is a seasonal position from March to the end of October, 2011.

The position involves all animal husbandry duties and giving daily talks to the public. The job requires a mature, friendly, outgoing person with a very hands-on approach. Applicants should be well spoken, team-orientated and physically fit, able to roll up their sleeves and willing to get involved.

This is a demanding, outdoor role, five days a week including weekends and bank holidays.

In season hours: 8am - 4.30pm (flexible)
Off season hours: 8.30am - 2.00pm (flexible). Animal care/zoo management qualification preferred, similar hands-on, animal care experience essential. Will need to live locally as accommodation is not provided.

Please send a current CV with a covering letter to Jules Brittan, General Manager, either by email to: info@seaviewwildlife.com or by post to Seaview Wildlife Encounter, Oakhill Road, Seaview, Isle Of Wight. PO34 5AP.

CLOSING DATE JANUARY 10th, 2011.

Kookie Kookaburra in the old oak tree!

Do you remember the images of Kookie the Kookaburra taken earlier this year? He was a rather ugly, prehistoric-looking, half-feathered fledgling that was abandoned by his mother here at the Park. He was hand-reared by the Keepers during the summer months. It was almost by accident that Kookie was placed in with some newly hatched rare-breed ducklings who cuddled up to him straight away (despite his being a predator as an adult in the wild). The story of Kookie being surrogate mother to three ducklings became international news.

Wow, look at him now! Kookie is a really handsome young Kookaburra and is still as chatty and cheeky with the Keepers as he ever was. These Images taken this morning show Kookie with his ‘fluffed up’ winter look! He’s no longer in the same enclosure as the ducklings that he ‘mothered’ – each species seemed very happy to go their own way once realising their very obvious differences!

Beautiful Murals at Seaview Wildlife Encounter!

One of this year’s winter projects is nearing completion – painting the loos at the Park! Sally and Julie have done more than just paint - the wall murals that they’ve created have turned out to be beautiful works of art! I’ve taken some photos of their work (below). A trip to the loo at Seaview Wildlife will take on a whole new fun dimension for visitors in 2011!

Otters on Ice!

We finished off the video filming at the Park today – and what a difference in the weather – although still very cold the sunshine lifted everyone’s mood, warmed frozen fingers (just a little!) and seemed to encourage a more interactive mood in the animals too! The light was lovely – so hopefully Roger has managed to capture some good footage.

Whilst out in the Park with Roger this morning, I captured a couple of images of our Otters – being inquisitive (in fact downright nosey!) about the arrival of the video camera in their enclosure. The first one (right) shows two of the three brothers checking out proceedings from the safety of their Holt!

Here’s Frank Sinatra (of our ‘Rat Pack’ brothers) getting braver, padding across the iced pond towards Roger and his camera.

You know the expression ‘curiosity killed the cat’ – well cats have got nothing on Otters when it comes to their curiosity rating – here’s Frank unable to resist a closer inspection of the video camera (on the surface of the iced pond!)

The final plunge – Frank’s in their feet and all! He uses his monkey-like paws to hold the camera lens steady whilst having a gnash (the ultimate Otter test) …. it wasn’t long before Roger reacted and saved his camera from being further Otterised!

VIDEO ACTION AT THE PARK IN THE MIDST OF WINTER!

Roger Lowe of Videojuice has completed quite a few assignments here at Seaview Wildlife during 2010. This morning he arrived once again, armed with his video camera, ready for action! His brief was to film each of the Animal Keepers behind the scenes – including identifying some of the differences between animal keeping in winter compared with the summer months. The plan is that each clip will appear on our Website and/or Blog in the next few weeks. So please keep an eye open!

Image above left: Roger earlier this morning perched ready for action in Pets corner; above right: Roger in Wallaby Walkabout

The shoot was scheduled for last week but due to the snow we postponed activities until today. It’s not been much warmer mind you – in fact, when the wind blew (as it did all morning) it tore right through us! Fortunately we didn’t have any snow or rain to contend with, only ice and sub-zero temperatures! The filming went well. We still have three more clips to shoot tomorrow – after that it’ll be over to Roger to edit (from the warmth of his studio) and prepare for viewing!

Thank You Email From Marian Wade - Wildlife Photographic Competition Winner

 

We received an email from Marian Wade earlier today, the winner of the Adult Category of our 2010 Wildlife Photographer of the Year Competition.  Included below are three other images that Marian submitted into this year’s competition.

We have also included (bottom left) Marian's winning entries into the 2010 Wightlife photographic competition - well done Marian!!
We plan to decorate an area in our Discovery Zone with some of the many wonderful images that Marian has taken over the years of our birds and animals.

 

Hi Jules,

I had a large parcel delivered yesterday - thank you so very very much!   I loved the book, the pictures are stunning. I see Andy Rouse had another winner with his Tiger picture.  I went on one of his lectures in January as he was at Chester, and it was brilliant.

I will look forward to visiting Jessops, I didn't expect the gift voucher to be so much, that is very kind of you. The surprise didn't end there though, as I read the letter from Miss Lorraine Adams  it had a family pass for another visit.  "I will just have to keep myself as fit and well as I can" said Tony, "So we can make another visit next year"

I will look through all my Seaview pictures and sort out my favourites.  I guess the ones I have entered into your competition will be high on my favourite list, but I will enjoy looking back through them all, and I'll be in touch soon. In the meantime I will be sending you a written thank you later today, this email is just to let you know the parcel arrived.

Wishing you and the team all the very best,

With love from Marian.

PS. Even though your park is closed I'm pleased to see your keeping up the blog  - I'm convinced I won't be the only avid reader!

PPS. Just thought you may like to see the images Wightlife displayed of mine this year.

Important BIAZA assessment visit to Seaview Wildlife Encounter

Regular Blog-followers may remember an article from earlier this year announcing our acceptance as provisional BIAZA members (British & Irish Association of Zoos & Aquaria). This took place after a visit from Dr Miranda Stevenson and Mr David Field, both from BIAZA (David is also Director of ZSL – London and Whipsnade Zoos). David kindly took on the role of being the Park’s mentor in working towards full BIAZA membership.

Yesterday, six months after the initial visit, David returned to the Park, this time accompanied by Lesley Dickie (Director of EAZA – European Association of Zoos & Aquaria) and Adrian Walls (Manager of Birds London Zoo). The intention of the visit was to assess the Park for full BIAZA status. It seems as though the day went really well and that the recommendation for full status will be made at the next membership meeting to be held in March 2011. It would certainly be a great accolade to coincide with our 40th anniversary year!

Image above from left: David Field, Lesley Dickie and Adrian Walls – taken yesterday, a particularly cold winter’s afternoon at Seaview Wildlife Encounter (29th November 2010).

Celebrations at the 2010 Isle of Wight Chamber of Commerce Business Awards for Excellence!

Five team members from Seaview Wildlife Encounter attended this year’s Isle of Wight Chamber of Business Awards for Excellence held at the Yacht Haven in Cowes. Group photo above from left to right: Alison Kinnett, Tracy Manning, Fern Daly and Jake Cousins (Jules Brittan top right).

Looking glamorous (despite the freezing temperatures outside!) at this high-profile, black-tie event – photo above (left to right) : Alison, Jake, Fern and Tracy representing Seaview Wildlife Encounter in receiving the 2010 award of Highly Commended in the category Best Small Business.

ELVIS THE ‘BOOTED BANTAM’

Elvis was given his name by one of our Park visitors – because of his ‘flaired trouser look’.

Having done some cursory research, it would seem that our Elvis is a Golden-Necked Booted Bantam (otherwise known as a Golden Neck d'Uccle Bantam). He’s not necessarily a pedigree, but certainly recognisable and undoubtedly handsome! We were donated two of these character-full cockerels but unfortunately had to separate them after some nasty feather-bashing took place (they’re extremely territorial).

Bantam chickens are known to be faster and "spunkier" than their larger counterparts. Full of ‘attitude’ and known for their aggressive ‘puffed up’ disposition these chickens can be quite comical in stature and behaviour. Our Elvis is a fine example of that! He ‘chats’ and struts about, making a song and dance out of everything he does!

Elvis is certainly very popular at the Park. Now that our visitors aren’t here to admire him he’s taken to spending time with the Keepers as well as being pursued on a daily basis by three un-Bantam but friendly females – namely a Silver Pheasant, a Mallard duck and one of our battery-rescued brown hens.

‘I just can’t help believing’ that, despite the ‘suspicious minds’ of his current female admirers who ‘can’t help falling in love’ with him, we might be able to find a couple of Booted Bantam Birds for Elvis to get ‘All shook up with’ next year!

TWO TINY SURPRISES BORN AT THE PARK!

 

A few weeks ago we moved our Harvest Mice Micromys Minutus into beautiful new display tanks – a safer, better option than the wooden, glass-fronted cabinets  that housed them  previously – unfortunately these proved to be not entirely escape proof…….  We now have four glass tanks – two new ones for the two adult groups- males in one, females in the other.  Then there are two smaller tanks underneath – one we’ve made home for a breeding pair and one that is ready for the juveniles to spend a few weeks once they’re weaned from their Mum but not yet ready to join the adult groups.    

The two Harvest Mice that I selected as our new breeding pair hadn’t produced a litter before, and I was beginning to wonder if perhaps the chemistry wasn’t quite right between them!  However, I decided to leave them together in case they were slow starters and hoped they’d snuggle their way through a winter courtship ready to produce babies in the Spring.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Imagine our surprise when peeking into the breeding tank yesterday morning – to see two tiny new faces peeking out of the nest!  We don’t heat the Discovery Zone (where we house our Harvest Mice) during winter, so although the mice are completely draft-free they’re more likely to produce litters in the Spring and Summer.  So these two babies are a real gift!  Hidden from view in their nest of hay, the baby mice are born pink after a gestation of between 18 to 21 days. Once the youngsters are approximately 8 weeks old they’ll be weaned and ready to move to the nursery tank. 

Until recently, I had been lead to believe that Harvest Mice are Britain’s smallest mammal – however, it was recently pointed out that, although a close call between the Harvest Mouse, Pygmy Shrew and Pipistrelle Bat – the Pygmy Shrew is fractionally the smallest!

Behind the Scenes in Winter – Ad Hoc Projects

 

It’s quite different here at the Park during the winter months.  From the end of October till a week before Easter each year the Park is closed to visitors.  This is a time for maintenance, repairs and development of the grounds, buildings and enclosures – everything from building new exhibits to  draining lakes and ponds!

Once the gates have been closed to the public, the retail and catering divisions start to pack away – deep cleaning scrubs and stock taking are the focus for the first week or two, then the treasure troves of gifts are packed away safely until Spring returns.  Most of the staff in these two divisions are employed on a seasonal basis but one or two kindly assist with ad hoc projects in the Park during the colder months.  An example of one such project is the decorating of the toilet blocks this winter.  Sound boring? No way!!  Sally (our retail manager) came up with the idea of drawing and painting fun versions of some of our animals inside the ‘loo cubicles’!  Sally and Julie (our receptionist) have been busy over the past few days – and their plan is already coming together – it’s undoubtedly going to put a smile on the faces of those visiting our loos in the future!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Image above left – Sally (L) and Julie (R) on their way to buy painting supplies!  Image above right – the artistic two-some working wonders with their imaginations and paint brushes!

Cool winds blow in Frisky ALPACA behaviour!

Out in Wallaby Walkabout this morning the Alpacas had a few mad moments …… the images above show how it started – with a cheeky nudge and a nibble ……….

Then the play fighting and rough and tumble really began ………….

Sometimes looking like two young stags, sometimes like two boisterous rams and the rest of the time more like a heap of woolly camels! Our two boys seemed to have a great time romping around together – albeit looking rather ungainly – Olly the Pygmy goat was intrigued and tried to join in the fun, but this was strictly a game for Alpacas only!

HOLLY HINDS – Our last Keeper-for-a-Day for 2010!

 

Holly Hinds was the last person to experience being a KEEPER-FOR-A-DAY at Seaview Wildlife Encounter in 2010!  It was a really hectic day during the last week in October – our last week open to the public and half term for schools.  With all that’s been going on since then I’ve been a bit delayed in entering Holly’s details onto our Blog – so here goes with a couple of photos and a reminder of Holly’s special day with us!

 

 

 

Holly is nearly 14 years old and from Rainham in Kent.  Holly loves animals and particularly enjoyed the time she spent in close contact with the Humboldt Penguins, the Wallabies and the Meerkats.

We look forward to welcoming Holly and her family back again soon.

 

 

 

 

FUNDRAISING FEEDBACK – Thank you to all who contributed!

As you may remember we were involved in fundraising for the Breast Cancer Campaign (Isle of Pink) during the month of September and the RSPCA Isle of Wight for a week in October this year. We’ve spoken to both charities and are pleased to be able to report back to you as follows:

BREAST CANCER CAMPAIGN (Isle of Pink) – this is the campaign’s third year on the Isle of Wight. Our visitors to the Park seem to be increasingly aware of this campaign and its importance - as can be seen from our collection figures that are increasing really well year-on-year:

2008: £89.34 2009: 192.07 2010: 311.17 Thank you for your support!

In terms of the Isle of Wight as a whole, final collection figures for the Isle of Pink aren’t yet in, but the target figure for this year is £30 000 (up from £23 000 in 2009 and a similar figure in 2008)). The final amount is due to be announced in the next few days. Watch out for a Breast Cancer Campaign press release!

RSPCA Isle of Wight is an independent charity – separate from the mainland RSPCA and completely reliant on local support. As you know, the RSPCA is responsible for both domestic and wild animal welfare and rescue on the Island. On hearing that this vital charity has been struggling to keep afloat in the current economic climate we rallied round right at the end of our season to help raise some funds (and awareness). Thank you to all those who donated – either by tossing coins into our Wishing Well or by popping a coin into the many collection boxes around the Park during the last week of October. Between £100-£120 was raised in that one week! Thank you for your generosity! We’ve committed to a more planned approach to RSPCA fundraising next year and hope the result will be revealed in increased funds!

A BIG SCARE WITH OUR BASIL (THE PYGMY GOAT)

It’s not always good or happy news at the Park. When one of our beloved animals is ill it’s always a big wrench for the Animal Care Team and everyone who knows the individual characters at Seaview Wildlife Encounter who is facing a malady.

Last Saturday night Basil and Olly, our two Pygmy Goats, escaped from their enclosure – they are Houdini escape artists at the best of times! Although they were safely contained within the Park, Basil unfortunately ate part of a shrub that was apparently from the Rhododendron family. It proved to be toxic – in fact, depending on the quantity he consumed we had to face the possibility that we might lose him. We’ve had the vet out twice and Bas has had various injections. We’ve all been on tenderhooks ….

We had to separate Basil and Olly for three nights to allow Basil complete rest and individual treatment. Poor young Olly cried for his friend and companion.

Thankfully Basil has improved markedly over the past few days! He has started a few cheeky antics again with the Keepers and is even managing to deal with young Olly’s energetic attempts to make him start romping around again!

New padlocks have since been fitted in order to avoid any future recurrence!

WILDLIFE PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR AT SEAVIEW WILDLIFE ENCOUNTER

Thank you to everyone who participated and entered into this year’s wildlife photographic competition - we received a record number of entries – and the quality of images has been the best ever!  It was a difficult decision for the judge – but the results are now in ……

ADULT CATEGORY WINNER (16+) (Image below)

MARIAN WADE from Shropshire with this photograph of one of our Pelicans  having “A Splashing Time”.  The judge felt that this image captures incredible movement – in the bird, in its feathers and in the water surrounding it.  Congratulations to Marian who is a keen competitor – in fact this is the third time she has won first prize in our Wildlife Photographic Competition!

 

 

 

 

 

 

ADULT CATEGORY (16+) SECOND PLACE (image left): SAMANTHA CANTELO from the Isle of Wight with this photograph of one of our Caribbean Flamingos.  The judge remarked on the vivid colours and textures, the unusual composition and the exceptional clarity.  Congratulations Samantha!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

ADULT CATEGORY (16+) THIRD PLACE (image right): Karen Dance from Huntingdon with this photograph of one of our juvenile Humboldt Penguins braying at feeding time.  The judge remarked on how Karen has captured this vocal moment with bold simplicity. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

JUNIOR CATEGORY WINNER (Under 16) - MATTHEW WOODS from Portsmouth with his photograph (below left) of one of our Meerkats in a classic Meerkat pose.  Congratulations Matt!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

JUNIOR CATEGORY SECOND PLACE – awarded to JOSEPH COOK for the fun image of the Silver Pheasant’s head (above right).  Well done Joseph!

 

 

 

 

 

JUNIOR CATEGORY THIRD PLACE – awarded to VICTORIA WILLIAMS for the photograph seen here on the right of one of “Goose feeding from hand”.  Excellent work Victoria!

 

 

 

 

 

Each of the selected photographers whose images are shown above will receive a prize – these are to be posted in the next few days! (Not yet being revealed!)

Thank you once again to all those who entered.  Please keep an eye open for our new themed competition that will be launched for our 40th Anniversary year in Spring 2011!