The two questions I probably get posed the most are: ‘Do you get paid for your work at SEA SOCIETY?’ ‘What made you so interested in New Zealand sea lions/pakake?’
Firstly, no I do not get paid for my work at SEA SOCIETY, I am a full-time volunteer. I am motivated by passion, my love for the wild, and my belief that we should hand a better/fairer world to our children/tamariki.
Secondly, New Zealand sea lion/pakake and I were not acquainted until March 2020. Upon first encountering them, I was amazed by their size, arguably regal-looking physicality, and their majority placid nature. I became motivated to campaign for pakake after reading numerous peer-reviewed journals and studying them in the wild. I learned they are indigenous; classified endangered by the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species; are the rarest seal in the world; and are a misunderstood species. In the past two plus years, I have had the pleasure of speaking, and working with pakake specialists, and have developed an understanding of these unique species.
I’ll share a secret with you…once I have gained my Master of Science (Zoology), I dream of contracting to SEA SOCIETY, or working with an amazing organisation such as Forest & Bird, or the Department of Conservation, with endangered and indigenous wildlife.
Photo: Sian Mair. Taken from 10 meters away and zoomed in with my camera.