Killer Whales and Their Prey in Iceland

This review is coming a little late as I went on my Earthwatch expedition this past summer (June 2018). First and foremost, I had an amazing time! If anyone is contemplating signing up for this expedition, DO IT! (I recommend signing up for the wait list if it's full) The researchers on this expedition are incredibly nice and passionate about their work. Truly some of the friendliest people I have ever met and I hope to one day cross paths with them again. Now, for the research. Weather in Iceland plays a big role in whether or not you can do research. There are three different types of research you can do while on this expedition. Land observation, boat observation and office work. I will be honest that for most of my trip we were unable to do boat observation because of the weather. This being said, I would 100% do this expedition again. On days that the weather was poor, the team spent their time doing dorsal fin photo identification with orcas that had been photographed a couple weeks prior. We also helped with classifying orca vocalizations. I found both of these tasks to be challenging (in a good way) and very informative. On days with good weather, we would either do land or boat observation, sometimes both. My most memorable land observation experience is when I was able to track a pod of orcas for two hours using the big binoculars (with the help of other volunteers) while researchers were pinpointing their exact location using a theodolite. And my most memorable boat observation experience was when we encountered a pod of 20 orcas. Volunteers kept eyes on the orcas, communicating to the note taker how many we saw and communicating to the boat captain of their location in proximity to the boat while the photographer took photos. Tips: -Definitely bring rain gear! (rain pants and rain jacket, plus waterproof shoes) *Hat and gloves also recommended -If you get seasick, bring something to counteract it. You will not want to miss out on any boat observations -If light bothers you while you sleep, bring an eye mask. The sun only sets for a couple hours at night and even then it doesn't get completely dark -Come with an open mind and ready to do anything! You may not get to do land/boat observation every day, but there is still much to learn and help out with This expedition is one of the top experiences of my life that I will never forget. Hope all researchers, volunteers and whales are doing well, and thanks for an amazing time :)

The small group of volunteers met at the same small airport in Reykjavik, that flew us to Vestmannaeyjar airport, on the island where this study was done. It was a short car ride from there to our comfortable accommodations in the center of the only town on the island. Throughout our stay, we were paired up with another volunteer, and as a pair took turns participating in one of three activities, all depending on the weather. Most days were warm and sunny. When clouds did come in the temperature dropped significantly. 1) We went to the land station for the day to look for whales through high powered magnifiers in order to direct those in the boat to whale sightings. We entered all sightings onto log sheets. We shared this site with thousands of puffins that could be easily observed as well at very close range. 2) We went out in the boat to observe whales up close, identify them, count the group size, and collect blubber samples using a special rifle for that purpose. These samples were analyzed and could identify diet and health of the whale. 3) Work in the lab on computers matching whales seen on recent expeditions, to a common database of whales seen over the years. The same whales would return year after year. The lead scientist on this trip Dr. Filipa Samarra was extraordinary. She was passionate about this work, kind and inspirational to all of us. She was always understanding, patient and told us enough to wet our appetite for more work and more understanding. I thought she handled our group brilliantly. I learned so much from her, and from my partner and team day after day. Iceland and her orcas are no longer a mystery to me but part of my life and purpose.

The expedition was everything I expected, and more. The time spent on the research was divided into three shifts; on the boat gathering data with the orcas, on the land trying to spot cetaceans and in the office, doing photo identification and splitting audio records. I found each of them very interesting, but particularly enjoyed the boat and the office. Similar to other reviews here, I thought it was amazing to be able to recognize individual orcas from the catalogue. The scientists all know their subject very well, and it was a fun, involved and social group of people together. The scenery, the Westman islands, is simply amazing - there is nothing like it in the world. Although weather can be rough in Iceland, we had plenty of good enough and even sunny days to go hiking. With the midnight sun, we would hike after dinner, be back by 23.00 or midnight, and get enough rest for the next day. It was such an incredible experience altogether, that I decided to do a second Earthwatch expedition this summer!