Seabird Members' magazine autumn 2017

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wonders of nature Scottish Seabird Centre Members’ magazine

An amazing opportunity for North Berwick:

Leading the way for marine education 10 The importance of the marine environment 16 New expertise on our Board 22 Members’ Shopping Week

Scottish Seabird Centre and the environment Sustainability and the environment are at the heart of everything we do. We have produced this magazine in an environmentally-friendly way. However, to help save trees and to reduce costs, you can receive your magazine by email – just contact membership@seabird.org or call +44(0)1620 890202.

Also, sign up to our enewsletters to be kept up-to-date with our latest news. You can do this at www.seabird.org

News

06 Law Primary School 06 Mary Tebble BEM 07 Picture perfect puffins 08 Seabird news

Features

10 Marine environment 12 Marine centre exhibits 16 New trustees 18 Erich Hoyt’s new book 20 Marine world 22 Members’ Shopping Week 32 Ocean plastics 38 Leuchie House

Regulars

05 Supporting the Centre 24 Gift Shop 26 Seabird Café 28 Volunteers 30 Boats 34 Education 36 Wildlife Club 40 What’s on 46 Kids

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Scottish Seabird Centre, The Harbour, North Berwick, EH39 4SS W: www.seabird.org E: info@seabird.org T: +44(0)1620 890202

Design: Wordpicturestory / www.wordpicturestory.co.uk

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Welcome from Tom The team has been incredibly busy since our Easter magazine. We enjoyed a record-breaking events season, with more people than ever attending our Easter and summer programme. This year there was a marine focus, with crabs and dolphins taking centre stage, and it was fantastic to get such a positive response.

SOS Puffin is back in full swing – the puffins headed back out to sea in August and since then the work parties have been out cutting down the tree mallow on Craigleith. It’s an amazing conservation project and one we are proud to be associated with.

We worked in partnership with Greenpeace earlier this year, as they headed out to the Bass Rock to undertake some marine pollution and plastics research. North Berwick was their first stop on a Scotland-wide tour and it was a brilliant campaign to raise awareness of this important issue.

Thank you to everyone who has supported our work this year – we are very grateful and look forward to keeping you updated with our plans.

Tom Brock OBE Chief Executive

Update from Laura Welcome to the autumn edition of wonders of nature.

We can’t quite believe that winter is on the way! Autumn and winter are a lovely time at the Centre with seal pups on the cameras and winter waders around the coastline.

See #Andrewswildlifesnaps on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram for updates on our coastal wildlife.

A huge thank you to everyone who has supported our plans for the future. We feel so lucky to have so many people believe in our plans to do more

education and conservation, and to widen our focus to the marine environment.

There is still time to sign-up to support if you haven’t already – you can do this in the Centre or online at https://seabird. org/national-marine-centre/43 Back by popular demand is our Members’ Shopping Week! The feedback from last year was that everyone loved the opportunity to meet with suppliers and visit throughout the week to enjoy discounts.

Scottish Seabird Centre magazine

We will look forward to seeing you all for more festive fun from 4 – 10 December.

Laura Adamson Magazine Editor and Marketing Manager

04 Special thanks The Scottish Seabird Centre is an independent charity dedicated to inspiring people to appreciate and care for wildlife and the natural environment. Registered Scottish charity no.

SC025837. Registered in Scotland no. 172288.

Special thanks and editorial contributions

Like any charity, we rely on the generosity of our members and supporters to develop and deliver our important activities in the field of wildlife conservation and education. Some of those who have pledged or given support over the last 12 months are named below. This list is in no way comprehensive; we are grateful to all who have supported us, many of whom choose to remain anonymous.

You know who you are and you know we are grateful!

Mr Smith and Mr Valenta Nancy Roberts Charitable Trust North Berwick Trust N. Smith Charitable Settlement Robert Barr Charitable Trust Robertson Trust Russell Trust Scottish Enterprise Scottish Natural Heritage Shirley Pugh Foundation Sir James Miller Edinburgh Trust Stafford Trust St. Mary’s Charity Tay Charitable Trust Tennant Southpark Charitable Trust William Dean Countryside and Education Trust William Grant Foundation Wolfson Foundation

Recent donors include: AEB Charitable Trust Bothwell Charitable Trust Castansa Trust John S Cohen Foundation Cray Trust Cruden Foundation Dulverton Trust East Lothian Educational Trust Ellem Foundation Enterprise Holdings Foundation Forth Ports Garfield Weston G C Gibson Charitable Trust Geoffrey Clark Charitable Trust Gordon Fraser Charitable Trust Hamish and Doris Crichton Charitable Trust H R Creswick Charitable Trust Inchcape Foundation JTH Charitable Trust Lindsays Charitable Trust Mrs Irene M Brown

Photography credits Images bring our magazine to life! We would like to say thanks to the following: Laura Adamson, Sean Bell, Keith Broomfield, Gareth Easton, Event Communications, Ben James/SNH, Tatiana Ivkovich Far East Russia Orca Project (FEROP, WDC), Tony Marsh, Gavin McDougall, Rob McDougall, Charlie Phillips, Maggie Sheddan, Phil Wilkinson

Scottish Seabird Centre magazine

Editorial contributions This issue contains articles from many valued contributors.

We would like to highlight John who is head of our Marine Advisory Group.

Professor John Baxter John is principal marine adviser at Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH), where he is responsible for the coordination of the SNH marine research, survey and monitoring work, providing quality assurance of all research outputs. He has also acted as Unit Head in the organisation’s Policy and Advice Directorate, as well as its National Oil Spill Response Advisor.

John represents SNH on a number of high level inter-agency and inter-governmental steering groups at both the Scottish and UK levels including the Special Committee on Seals (SCOS), and the Healthy and Biologically Diverse Seas Evidence Group. John is Chief Editor (Marine and Coastal) of the international journal ‘Aquatic Conservation: Marine and Freshwater Ecosystems’ publishing 6 issues per year. He has published many papers and holds an honorary readership at the University of St Andrews, among others.

05 News An update from fundraising manager, Charlotte.

We hope this magazine inspires you with all the stories, projects and activities we’ve been able to achieve thanks to your support as a Seabird Member.

Supporting the Centre

Over the last few years we have been trying hard to raise awareness of our charitable work. Many know us from the café (and lovely scones!) as well as the shop, Discovery Centre and boat trips.

Our charitable activities, like our award-winning education programmes, public science events and practical conservation work, are less visible to the public, but incredibly important.

If you, or someone you know, would like to support the Centre by giving a donation to enable us to continue with our important education and conservation activities, or contribute to our plans for a national marine centre, then we would love to hear from you.

Here is some feedback from children and teachers who have been involved in our education activities: “Massive thanks for a great day. You looked after us so well and the children all loved the activities. A few wet feet, but lots of happy children, hopefully inspired to spend many hours on the beach and in rockpools over the holidays.”

“Great links to prior learning.

Lots of opportunity for pupil discussion … Andrew (Education Officer) has been amazing.”

To make it as easy as possible, we’ve created lots of ways you can help such as:

Donating at the Centre or via post Via Donate at www.seabird.org Or www.justgiving.com

Texting BASS17 £10 to 70070 You can give up to £10 We are always grateful for those who offer to have cash boxes, like Gannet’s Deli in Gullane, Seton Sands holiday park and the Gannet and Guga Café in Edinburgh.

You might be interested in getting your company involved, organising an event, volunteering with us or leaving a legacy.

Whatever the idea, please don’t hesitate to get in touch!

Some of our great feedback: Thank you for telling us all about the sea. I absolutely loved rockpooling because it was fun, exciting, amazing and wonderful.

Scottish Seabird Centre magazine

06 News

News from around the Centre Working with Law Primary Our education officer, Andrew, recently collaborated with Law Primary School on a very special filming project.

To give schools a feel for what they can experience during an education visit to the Seabird Centre, the P1s worked with awardwinning photographer, Barrie Williams, to create a video of a ‘typical’ school trip.

The video demonstrates that, even despite the Scottish weather, schools are encouraged to engage with the stunning North Berwick coastline in a safe, respectful and sustainable way. It highlights that there are a range of workshops linked to the Curriculum for Excellence and that Education Officer, Andrew, who is a qualified science teacher, can engage with children of all abilities in a way that is educational and fun.

Amanda-Jane Thomson, from Law Primary, said: “The Scottish Seabird Centre is an excellent educational resource for schools across the Lothians. We work with them so often that we were delighted to help with this project and the kids loved it, which comes across in the video! We hope this encourages other schools to make the trip to the Centre.

With the links to the Curriculum and the excellent team, we would highly recommend it.”

Barrie Williams said: “One thing that came across during filming is just how excited the children get when learning about the marine environment. Hopefully this video inspires more schools to visit the Seabird Centre, giving the kids a fun day out learning about seabirds, rocky shores and fascinating marine life.”

Mary Tebble honoured in the Queen’s Birthday list We were delighted and incredibly proud of our volunteer and trustee, Mary Tebble BEM, who was honoured in the Queen’s Birthday list earlier this year. Mary has achieved a great many things and we are so lucky to have her support.

Mary worked at the British Museum (now the Natural History Museum) in the Echinoderm Section. From 1969 to 1984, Mary’s husband, a marine biologist, was the Director of the Royal Scottish Museum (now known as the National Museum of Scotland). He had been a pilot in World War 2, and founded the National Museum of Flight at East Fortune. Mary was involved in starting children’s clubs at both these museums.

Mary moved to North Berwick in 1995 and she is an active member of many conservation organisations. She was the Chair of the Scottish Seabird Centre volunteers from 2002 to 2009.

In 1992 Mary won the Queen’s Anniversary Challenge Award, and Whitbread Award, for pioneering Toy Libraries for handicapped children in Scotland.

Our CEO, Tom, said: “This was wonderful news and a very much deserved honour for a remarkable person. Mary has been an outstanding supporter of the Centre since before we opened and is a supporter of many wildlife charities. She is an active and committed Centre volunteer and trustee. Every weekend she loves to share her extensive knowledge and passion for wildlife with visitors and staff, which we very much appreciate.”

Well done Mary – we all think you are fantastic!

Scottish Seabird Centre magazine

07 News

Picture perfect puffins To celebrate puffin season we launched our first ever puffin photo Facebook competition.

A different winner was selected each week, with 150 images submitted over the 4-week competition. Award-winning photographer, Tom Langlands, selected each week’s winners.

Those with picture perfect puffins were: Week 1 William Dickson from Kirkcaldy Week 2 Craig Newton from Edinburgh Week 3 Beverley Thain from Peterhead Week 4 Neil Henderson from Cornwall

Tom Langlands said: “Puffins are a ‘red status’ bird in terms of conservation – this means that they are of greatest concern with numbers having declined rapidly in recent decades. It is therefore wonderful to see so many amazing images of these ‘clowns of the sea’ – not just because all the contestants took great puffin pictures but mainly because they got out there and saw the birds in their natural habitat.

“Taking great images is a nice thing to do and it also has the added advantage of raising awareness of wildlife. It was a pleasure and an honour to see so many wonderful puffin

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Tom Brock:

As a conservation and education charity, we focus on encouraging people to engage with nature in a fun yet sustainable way. images from a host of different places. I had a lot of fun judging the competition and I do hope that everyone who took part got pleasure from it too.”

The winners each received a photography voucher to the value of £50. Well done to our winners!

Tom Brock adds: “As a conservation and education charity, we focus on encouraging people to engage with nature in a fun yet sustainable way.

“From late April to early August our visitors are able to control the interactive live cameras to see puffins in their natural habitat, with a further chance to see them on one of our boat trips. Notably, the Isle of May is the biggest puffin colony on the east coast of Britain with around 90,000 on the island.

“Congratulations to all the winners and those commended. Seeing everyone’s stunning images has really reinforced how popular puffins really are and how important it is that we look after this threatened species for future generations.”

Scottish Seabird Centre magazine

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08 News

News from around the Centre

RSPB windfarm appeal On 15 August RSPB Scotland applied directly to the Supreme Court for permission to appeal against the recent decision by the Inner House of the Court of Session on its Firth of Forth offshore wind farm judicial review.

The judicial review has been ongoing since early 2015 as is a challenge against Scottish Ministers’ decision to consent four commercial scale offshore windfarms in the Forth and Tay region in 2014.

The consents were granted despite Scottish Ministers’ own estimates that concluded all four projects could kill 1,169 gannets and 1,251 puffins every year. This could result in 21% fewer gannets on the Bass Rock and 25% fewer puffins on other ‘protected’ islands of the Forth.

RSPB Scotland has major concerns with the manner in which these figures were generated and the way in which Scottish Ministers’ decision to approve the projects was taken.

If left unchallenged, the existing consents, their potential impacts on seabirds and the precedent they set would all stand. Whilst sustainable energy projects are important to mitigate against climate change, they need to be in the right place. We share the RSPB’s concerns about this project and will support where we can with this appeal.

For further information on this issue: www.rspb.org.uk

Climate change and its impact on seabirds This August, the Science Editor for the Guardian, Robin McKie, highlighted the impact warming waters were having on Britain’s seabirds.

Robin highlighted: “Our populations of seabirds – Arctic skuas, Arctic terns and kittiwakes – are in freefall. And, in some cases, the numbers are dire.”

Robin spoke to Euan Dunn, from the RSPB. Euan states: “Our seabird colonies, especially those in northern Scotland, are withering away.

One example of the devastating losses is found on St Kilda, one of the most significant seabird colonies in the North Atlantic. On this rocky outpost, there has been a 99% reduction in kittiwake nests since 1990.”

Robin continues: “As to the possible causes of the dramatic decline in seabird populations, most experts point to the waters around the UK that have increased in temperature by more than 1°C thanks to global warming caused by rising greenhouse gas emissions. In the wake of this change, seas have also seen a dramatic loss of zooplankton while, further up the food chain, sand eels – a critically important source of food for many birds – have disappeared from many parts of the Atlantic and the North Sea. As a result, seabirds such as terns and kittiwakes – which only take sand eels from the sea surface – are doing far worse than birds such as razorbills, which take fish from greater depths.”

To read the full article visit: www.theguardian.com/environment

Numbers are dire.

Scottish Seabird Centre magazine

09 News

SOS Puffin season

Engagement on the Isle of May

SOS Puffin is a conservation campaign, led by trustee and Seabird supporter, John Hunt, focusing on the islands of Craigleith and Fidra.

In July this year, we were delighted to read of an engagement on the Isle of May, during one of our landing trips. Russell and Angela from Middlesex had a brilliant day – the first time for Angela seeing puffins! Tom Brock said: “Huge congratulations to Russell and Angela – what wonderful news! We became aware of their engagement as Russell included it in his excellent TripAdvisor review of their Isle of May landing trip from the Seabird Centre.

The programme has been running since 2007 and in that time over 1,100 people have got involved with the work outings to cut down the tree mallow. Many volunteers come regularly and some have been out over 50 times, including one over 100 times!

Tree mallow clogs the puffin burrows preventing them from being able to access these and breed – as a result, puffin numbers on the island of Craigleith and Fidra plummeted. But recent reports show that numbers are increasing!

Check out what’s involved with this fantastic project at the conservation section on our website: https://seabird. org/conservation/44

“The Isle of May is a truly magical and special place.

What an original and brilliant location to propose! All of us on the Seabird team wish them the very best for their future together and we will look forward to seeing them next time they are in North Berwick.”

10 Feature Professor John Baxter leads the national marine centre’s Marine Advisory Group and is principal marine adviser at Scottish Natural Heritage.

The wonderful marine environment and wildlife of Scotland are one of the best kept secrets. Talk to people about the spectacular natural heritage and scenery of Scotland and most will know about the glories of the Cairngorms or the beauty of Loch Lomond or the remote expanses of the Flow Country.

But nothing or very little of our marine habitats and species. This is a secret that needs to be shared and appreciated by everyone.

Who hasn’t heard of the coral reefs of the Great Barrier Reefs or the Red Sea? Scotland’s seas are equally if not more spectacular with a diverse range of landscapes such as the towering seamounts that rise from the deep seabed to over 1,500m (higher than Ben Nevis) to the long sinuous sea lochs. Our seas have a diverse range of amazing animals and plants including sea pen forests, flame shell beds, cold-water coral reefs, seabirds, basking

There are so many wonders to share and exciting stories to tell, so much still to learn about Scotland’s seas.

sharks (the second largest fish in the world), porpoise, whales and dolphins. The problem is that they are largely out of sight and inaccessible to most people.

The health of the seas around Scotland is vital to everyone’s wellbeing, sustaining life through the provision of food, oxygen, energy, as well as providing recreation and inspiration. We are constantly discovering more through ground-breaking research carried out at Scottish universities, including the mapping of the sea bed and the tracking of basking sharks, seals and skate using a combination of satellite and mobile phone technology.

Advances in scientific research is also helping us to understand more and more about the seas around us and we are realising what a friend it has been to us as we face the greatest current challenge of climate change. The seas have absorbed huge quantities of heat that would otherwise have resulted in ever higher air temperatures. Some marine wildlife, such as maerl, a delicate red calcareous seaweed, trap and store carbon, locking it away in its skeleton for thousands of years, thus helping to mitigate the impacts of climate change.

Scottish Seabird Centre magazine

There are so many wonders to share, so many exciting stories to tell, so much still to learn about Scotland’s seas.

The proposed national marine centre at North Berwick will provide the opportunity for everyone to discover these wonders without even getting wet. Through its planned education programmes, it will inspire future generations to help protect and respect the marine environment, and through its citizen science programme get involved, be it through shore clean ups, marine animals stranding reporting schemes, or climate change monitoring.

Having worked for over 40 years in marine scientific research and conservation in Scotland, I have been privileged to visit some amazing places such as St Kilda, the Orkney Islands, the Bass Rock, and work with some great scientists.

I have been very lucky, and not everyone will have the opportunities I have had, but I am convinced that the national marine centre will afford all those that visit, glimpses of what is in the seas around Scotland and I am certain everyone will not fail to be inspired.

Professor John Baxter:

The marine environment and why it is important

12 Feature

The Marine Exploratory will allow people to journey from shallow waters up to the heights of the seabird colonies of St Kilda and the Bass Rock, and then back down to the ocean’s depths. There will also be the opportunity to explore underwater gardens, forests and reefs, as well as finding out more about Scotland’s incredible megafauna including sharks, orcas (killer whales) and dolphins. The Seabird Centre’s popular interactive live cameras will be in this area.

No matter how far into the marine world you would like to go, the exhibits at the national marine centre will take you there.

We are delighted to have unveiled the proposed plans for the key exhibits that would feature in the marine centre, putting North Berwick at the forefront of marine education and inspiring people to protect and conserve the world’s oceans and marine wildlife for future generations.

The proposed centre aims to become a must-visit destination as well as offering a high-quality facility for locals. Created in partnership with Event, one of Europe’s leading experience design agencies, the exhibits and attractions have been developed with advice from the Centre’s Marine Advisory Group led by Professor John Baxter, the principle marine adviser for Scottish Natural Heritage, and drawing on expertise from scientists, researchers and academics across Scotland.

Collaboration is central to the plans, with partnerships being developed across Scotland as well as internationally, highlighting the importance of Scotland’s seas within a global context.

The proposed exhibits will create an immersive, multi-sensory and dynamic experience, aimed at creating a sense of wonder and discovery.

Plans include: Planet Ocean will creatively tell the story of how all life stems from the ocean. Clever use of light and 3D graphics will bring amazing facts to life, helping visitors appreciate that we depend on the ocean for survival and inspire them to help protect it.

The Marine Threshold will be an immersive experience using projections of film footage to allow visitors to feel like they are diving under the waves, giving them access to a world they’ve never seen before.

The Marine Lab will be an interactive workshop area highlighting the remarkable story of some of the crucial marine research taking place in Scotland to help safeguard the oceans. Visitors will have the opportunity to engage and learn from regular ‘Meet the Scientist’ days and other learning events.

The Marine Observatory will focus on the wildlife that surrounds North Berwick. Visitors will experience stunning 360 degree views out to the Firth of Forth and North Berwick Law. There will also be information about the historical significance of the area including the Auld Kirk.

In the plans, the new centre will feature a dedicated children’s area where young visitors can discover a world above and below the waves. There will be hi tech virtual viewing devices such as snorkel masks, diving masks, periscopes or binoculars to see a wide range of different marine life. A 3D Marine Theatre is planned to showcase film footage that will bring the marine environment to life.

Accessibility is a central part of the plans: those with needs will be fully catered for with diverse displays and there will be the opportunity for visitors to delve into the level of knowledge they want to, as multiple layers of information are presented.

Grace Martin, project director for the marine centre said: “We’ve collaborated with some of the most respected people in the marine world to ensure we are creating an informative, inspiring and enjoyable visitor attraction.

Our planned exhibits will connect people with the fascinating world of our oceans as well as showcase the importance of looking after them.

Scottish Seabird Centre magazine

A wonderful environment:

Delving into the marine world The exhibits will create an immersive, sensory and dynamic experience, aimed at creating a sense of wonder and discovery.

“The aim of the Centre is to engage with all ages, catering for different levels of understanding. We will signpost to other attractions, sources of information and opportunities for citizen science. More in-depth levels of engagement will be available for enthusiasts and repeat visitors, willing to dive deeper, with a changing programme of activities and exhibits.”

Professor John Baxter, head of the Centre’s Marine Advisory Group, said: “There are so many wonders to share, so many exciting stories to tell and so much to learn about Scotland’s seas. The marine centre will afford all those that visit, glimpses of what is in the seas around Scotland and I’m certain everyone will be hugely inspired by what they see.”

The new national marine centre is planned to open in 2020, timed for Scotland’s Year of Coasts and Waters.

The Scottish Seabird Centre has been awarded development funding of £290,000 from the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) to progress plans to create the ‘National Marine Centre’. HLF has also given its initial support for a £3.5million bid for the project. Initial support means the project meets HLF criteria for funding and HLF believes the project has potential to deliver high-quality benefits and value for Lottery money. The application was in competition with other supportable projects, so this is an endorsement of outline proposals.

The project now has up to two years to submit fully developed proposals to secure a firm award.

The new national marine centre is planned to open in 2020, timed for Scotland’s Year of Coasts and Waters.

Scottish Seabird Centre magazine

Tom Brock:

Putting North Berwick at the forefront of marine education and inspiring people to protect and conserve the world’s oceans and marine wildlife for future generations.

16 Feature A wealth of experience joins the Scottish Seabird Centre’s board of trustees.

Welcome:

Stephen, Juliana and Katie With a charity’s board of trustees, it’s essential to ensure that, ongoing, there is fresh perspective, ideas and skills brought to the table. With the evolution of the Scottish Seabird Centre to a national marine centre for Scotland, new board members were appointed to support this vital transition.

The vision of the new centre is to inform, engage and excite Scotland’s population and its visitors about our amazing marine heritage and the need to look after it.

Exciting new exhibitions and activities will inspire and motivate visitors, having a long-term impact on their thinking and behaviour. There will be a significantly increased education programme and through this, awareness and understanding will build marine environmental citizenship across Scotland, the UK and further afield, playing a vital role in conserving our valuable marine heritage for future generations.

Engaging and working with people in East Lothian is central to the project and joining the Centre’s board is East Lothian Councillor Katie Mackie. Following her election as a councillor for Musselburgh in May, Katie was delighted to be asked to join the Seabird Centre board, bringing with her a range of highly beneficial skills.

Born and raised in Edinburgh and following completion of a BA Hons in Retail Marketing at Manchester Metropolitan University, Katie has been employed in several public relations and corporate affairs roles. In 2016, she became the Head of Office for Jeremy Balfour MSP. Prior to this Katie was the UK and Ireland External Corporate Affairs Manager for global brewer, Molson Coors.

Katie said: “I’ve lived in East Lothian for the past 13 years and I have fond memories of the area: there were many Sunday drives with my grandmother and great aunt, with a stop-off in Musselburgh for ice cream. Even now I enjoy a Sunday stroll along Yellowcraigs and introducing my friends and family to the many delights East Lothian offers.”

To assist with the engagement of the science sector, Dr Stephen Breslin has been appointed. Chief Executive Officer of the 5-star Glasgow Science Centre, Stephen is committed to stimulating people’s interest in science and helping them to discover the pleasure and relevance in science, engineering and technology.

With over 20-years’ experience within the science sector, Stephen is dedicated to driving the sector forward, believing in inspiring through hands-on engagement.

Stephen said: “North Berwick has always been a very special place for me and I have very many happy memories of holidays there with my children. The wildlife and sea life on and around the Bass Rock and the surrounding islands, make the area one of the world’s natural wonders.

“The role of the Seabird Centre in being a gateway to this and raising awareness of our responsibilities to conserve and protect this area is critically important. The plans to grow into the national marine centre are very exciting and will ensure that current and future generations will be able to enjoy and experience the wonders of this area to the full.”

Scottish Seabird Centre magazine

From top to bottom: Stephen, Juliana and Katie

Also bringing national experience to the board is Juliana Delaney FTS. Chief Executive of Continuum Attractions, who own and operate a range of cultural visitor attractions across the UK, Juliana’s specialities include investing in and operating commercial cultural visitor attractions, as well as identifying potential new projects for development and securing high profile partnerships.

Juliana, who was on the Advisory Board for Marketing Edinburgh and a Council Member for the Tourism Industry Council UK, said: “I first came to North Berwick in 1968 en-route from York to Edinburgh to collect my school uniform – my mother thought it would be an adventure to visit Scotland rather than buying it in Yorkshire! Even then I remember the impact of North Berwick – a magical place where the sky met the sea and twixt the two was the wonderful sandy beach.

“Four years ago, my husband and I stayed for a week in a cottage near Tantallon Castle which led to the purchase of a cottage nearby.

We were so excited the day we got the keys – waiting on the west beach for the exchange to take place – and looking forward to many more happy times in this lovely location. My cottage, named Solan Goose the Norse name for gannet, and with a cracking view of the Bass, is now very much our second home.

“As I have been in the visitor attraction business for 30+ years and ‘live’ in the area I wanted to offer any assistance I could to help keep the Seabird Centre be the success story of East Lothian. The national success of East Lothian’s North Berwick as ‘the’ Scottish holiday seaside resort of choice and ‘the’ most desirable place to live and work in Scotland is very much linked to the Centre’s agenda.”

For more information on the national marine centre visit https://www.seabird.org/nationalmarine-centre/43

18 Feature Erich Hoyt, the Seabird Centre’s unofficial whale and dolphin expert on call, tells us about his new book.

Erich wrote most of his 22 books while living in North Berwick (1990–2013). Based in Dorset now, he continues to do whale research, helping to create sanctuaries and protected areas around the world, and to write books and articles. His new book profiled below is published in October in the US, Canada and the UK.

“Do you want to write a popular encyclopedia of whales, dolphins and porpoises?”

It was my publisher asking. We had worked together on Creatures of the Deep and Orca: The Whale Called Killer, both narrative-driven books where I could stretch out as a writer and tell a story. I wasn’t so sure about researching and writing an encyclopedia (this being a North American publisher, it was ‘encyclopedia’ not ‘encyclopaedia’).

After some thought, I agreed, but only if I could tell stories of what we’ve been learning about whales and dolphins in the field, the revolution in research and the part the public has played.

Only if I could make this an encyclopedia of wild whales and dolphins. I also wanted to relay my thoughts on how we ought to be saving whales from growing noise and ship traffic, pollution and the curse of getting caught in fishing gear.

Known as ‘bycatch’, accidental entanglements in fishing gear are the leading cause of whale and dolphin deaths. I was excited to explore some of the latest ideas on the culture of whale and dolphin societies, their extraordinary social and acoustic behaviour, and the idea of cetacean rights – personhood for whales and dolphins.

The publisher agreed.

The Encyclopedia of Whales, Dolphins and Porpoises takes readers around the world, meeting known individual whales and dolphins and people in action – such as this account from the Moray Firth in Scotland.

Dolphin field officer, Charlie Phillips from Whale and Dolphin Conservation, has a special relationship with bottlenose dolphins.

In 2015, he photographed a mother dolphin named Kesslet with her four-month-old calf near the Kessock Channel, in the Moray Firth Special Area of Conservation (SAC). He’d first seen Kesslet with the baby the previous September. However, since then, Kesslet had turned up alone, the calf having disappeared, probably dead.

In April 2015, Phillips noted in his blog that “it is a difficult time for our dolphins at the moment as the early salmon run has pretty much stuttered to a halt. The dolphins are positioning themselves anywhere that they think migratory fish will run… they are even coming through the area on a falling tide.”

Phillips was worried about Kesslet.

Day after day, when Charlie Phillips went looking, Kesslet was nowhere to be found.

The morning of 1 May, however, he finally caught up with her near the Inverness Marina.

She was hunting for salmon and looked healthy – especially with her prize food catch of the day. Kesslet had successfully raised another calf, one called Charlie, named in Phillips’ honour by Aberdeen University researchers.

Kesslet’s Charlie is now mostly on his own and trying to fit in with the boys. In time, Kesslet might have the chance to be a mother again.

This northernmost population of bottlenose dolphins sometimes visits the Firth of Forth and swims past the Seabird Centre and Bass Rock.

These robust dolphins – at 10–13 feet (3–4 m) long and 1,100 to 1,300 pounds (500–600 kg) for the adults – can be twice the length and several times the weight of bottlenose dolphins in other areas of the world.

Scottish Seabird Centre magazine

Erich Hoyt:

The secret lives of whales and dolphins

Getting to know whales and dolphins as individuals means we can follow their lives, tell stories about them and help protect our shared habitat. Their health – and ultimately their future – is closely entwined with our own.

Other fish to look out for in Scottish west coast sea lochs are goldsinny and rock cook wrasse. Both are colourful fish and are frequently found over kelp beds.

Keith Broomfield:

Scotland’s amazing marine wonders

21 Feature Our friend, PR-guru and wildlife expert, Keith Broomfield, explores different marine wildlife.

Some men when they hit their midlife crisis buy a sports car or a motorbike. Me? Well, I’ve just acquired a wetsuit to go snorkelling in Scottish waters and get right up close to our amazing marine life.

When younger, I snorkelled a lot in Scotland, but for the last 25 years or so I have confined this underwater passion to the much warmer Mediterranean.

But with a holiday trip to Lochinver in the far north-west looming, I knew this would be the perfect time to face our chilly seas once again like a true Braveheart.

So, with underwater camera in hand, I took the plunge in Loch Kirkaig recently, a small coastal inlet south of Lochinver.

Splash, gurgle, and in I went, and wow, it was so good to be back in Scotland’s underwater world once again. There was life everywhere, most notably numerous green shore crabs.

Shore crabs are a fundamental keystone of our inshore marine environment, a double act of vital scavengers while also being food for so many other creatures. Larger fish such as cod will feast upon these crabs when they have moulted and are in their temporary soft-shelled stage – peelers as they are known. Juvenile crabs, as planktonic larvae, are avidly devoured by small fish.

There was a fair bit of squabbling going on among these crabs, and as I glided over the seabed, several squared up to each other.

I’m no crab expert, but I suspect this was their breeding season.

Then, a peculiar small elongated and camouflaged eel-like fish drifted into view, with a snout just like a seahorse. I could so easily have missed it and only by chance did I pick up its subtle movements. It was a Nillson’s pipefish, which uses vibrations of its top fin to gently move over the seabed.

Over the rockier areas, small groups of young pollack darted through the waving fronds of kelp. This was just wonderful, and there were surprises at every turn, including a small bib or pout, its sides flecked with vertical stripes. I have only ever seen this fish, a member of the cod family, when diving in Cornwall before and never realised they occurred so far north.

Eventually I tired and slowly drifted towards a remote sandy beach where in the shallow waters I came across numerous tiny semi-transparent crustaceans with long proboscises and hump-back bodies. They were mysid shrimps, sometimes known as opossum shrimps.

Like the crab larvae, they are eaten by so many other creatures.

In effect, I was swimming through an underwater food factory; a nursery area for fish and other animals, and the reason why our inshore waters are so important to our wider marine ecology.

If I snorkelled this sea loch every day of the year, I would surely see something new each time, such was its biological diversity.

But more than that, I was a Scottish snorkelling addict again; hook, line and sinker.

This article first appeared in the Dundee Courier.

Food chain:

Shore crabs are a fundamental keystone of our inshore marine environment, a double act of vital scavengers while also being food for so many other creatures.

Scottish Seabird Centre magazine

Members’ Shopping Week

23 Feature Following the success of last year’s special week for Seabird Members, the Members’ Shopping Week will be back for 2017.

Taking place from 4 – 10 December there will be a whole host of extra treats, to say thank you to our Members and supporters.

During this week we will be open from 10:00 to 16:00 during the week and till 17:00 at the weekend.

As we are writing this, the Seabird team are currently finalising plans, but there will be the chance to enjoy 15% off all items (with a few little exceptions) including beach and wildlifeinspired homewares; Scottish food and drink from Mrs Bridges, Brodies, The Chocolate Tree and Daffy’s Gin; toiletries from Scottish Fine Soaps, Men’s Grooming; Scottish jewellery and handbags plus everyone’s favourite soft toys, cards and books. Fantastic items from Earth Squared too.

There will be different suppliers in each day offering insight and recommendations into what’s hot this winter, plus special offers and competitions.

In this year’s raffle there will be treats for big ones and little ones alike, with some fantastic prizes up for grabs at a very small price.

Not only that but there will be the chance to buy Christmas membership for your family and friends, as well as gift vouchers which can be used in the Discovery Centre, Gift Shop, Seabird Café and on boat trips, and our ever-popular puffin, gannet and seal adoptions.

For this week only, Members will get 15% off Christmas lunch – turkey with all the trimmings!

Ideal to get in training for Christmas Day. During December the Discovery Centre will be a hive of Christmas activity with Christmas colouring-in, a festive trail, story time for kids plus don’t miss the 3D Wildlife Theatre Film Experience.

Bargains galore:

15% off all items (with a few little exceptions)

Early Christmas:

For this week only, Members will get 15% off Christmas lunch – turkey with all the trimmings!

Ideal to get in training for Christmas Day.

We will look forward to welcoming you to the Members’ Shopping Week!

Scottish Seabird Centre magazine

24 Gift shop James McHardy, our Gift Shop Manager, has been working hard sourcing some fabulous products.

Retail therapy:

Nautical, nostalgic, witty, ethical, fun, quirky and stylish!

Port and Lemon At Port and Lemon, the designers like to create a quirky mix of nostalgia and nautical wit, which appeals to everyone, young or old, who has a love of the sea.

The Port and Lemon brand was created in 2012

by Tracy Evans and Kate Cooke who have many years’ experience in the design industry. They met at an art show and realised they shared their love of the beach, dog walking, coastal pubs and cake!

Their product range offers contemporary coordinated home products and gifts. The first ‘Hello Sailor’ and ‘Salty Sea Dog’ designs have become bestsellers. The strong blue and white imagery used on their products appeals to seaside lovers and those who aspire to coastal living.

More recent products incorporate more colour and land-based themes, but always maintaining the humour and nod to the past, produced in a fresh and contemporary style.

Earth Squared Earth Squared started some 13 years ago after founder, Alison Henderson, returned from two years’ volunteering in social projects in Guatemala. Passionate about social justice and with a head for business, Alison wanted to start a Fairtrade business with an emphasis very much on design and quality.

Scouring the globe for potential suppliers, Alison decided to focus on Vietnam which, at the time, was struggling to export overseas and, after some trial and error, Alison was delighted to forge a relationship with a supplier who shared Alison’s vision for distinctive, ethical products. This allowed Earth Squared to combine contemporary designs with fantastic craftsmanship.

Earth Squared HQ is based in the market town of Haddington where their products are designed. The fabulous range of products includes purses, handbags and pencil cases in fun, printed fabric and oilcloth designs.

Look out for their gorgeous ‘North Berwick Rocks’ mugs, a great gift idea.

Scottish Seabird Centre magazine

RSPB Range New to the Seabird Gift Shop this year, we are delighted to introduce the RSPB range of gifts from their ‘By the Sea’ range. There is no need to feel guilty about treating yourself to some of the lovely products available as 90% of RSPB’s net income is used for conservation, public education and advocacy in the UK and around the world.

Where possible the products are manufactured in the UK or EU, and selected with care for quality, value for money and to ensure limited impact on the environment.

Browse the RSPB stand for ‘By the Sea’ themed purses, mugs, glasses cases, handbags and tasteful homewares. This is a fantastic way to help two charities with one purchase!

Scottish Seabird Centre magazine

26 Café Helen McCaskill, our Catering Manager, provides a flavour of what is on offer for the coming months, where comfort food is key to help us through the winter!

Enjoy coffee and cake, soup and a sandwich or a heartier meal

Menu favourites Whether you are coming to the Seabird Café for coffee and cake, soup and a sandwich or a heartier meal, there are many comforting choices. Cullen skink is proving a very popular choice for lunch. If you are in the mood for something a bit spicy, order a very moreish plate of Cajun chicken nachos, with sour cream, salsa and guacamole. The nachos can also be served as a sharing platter for a perfect tasty lunch.

Fancy a local tipple?

To accompany your delicious lunch, treat yourself to a lovely glass of wine or choose from our selection of local ales and ciders. A particular favourite is Thistly Cross Cider.

Yum:

Cullen skink is proving a very popular choice for lunch.

Established as a collaboration between farmer, Ian Rennie, and artist-turned-cidermaker, Peter Stuart, in 2008, Thistly Cross has gained a reputation for making ciders that people rave about.

Based at the Cider Shed on South Belton Farm, in the heart of the East Lothian countryside, Ian and Peter are involved in every aspect of making their award-winning Scottish farmhouse cider.

From pressing the Scottish apples and strawberries, to achieving the smooth, balanced Thistly Cross flavour by fermenting with Champagne yeast then maturing for six months, they are invested at every Scottish Seabird Centre magazine

step of the cider-making process, from apple right through the finished product, cider. Exciting flavours in their range include ginger, elderflower and strawberry.

Winter deck We often highlight the café sun deck as the place to be over the summer months but we also enjoy some wonderfully bright, crisp days over winter.

Come prepared with cosy layers, scarves and hats (don’t forget sunglasses!) to enjoy the magical views over the Forth to the Bass Rock and along the East Beach to the Glen and beyond.

Winner’s dinner Fancy the chance of winning Seabird Café vouchers for a warming lunch for two over the chilly winter months?

Simply email your name and membership number to info@seabird.org by 30 November 2017. Postal entries also accepted.

Good luck!

Sunglasses or scarves?:

Enjoy the magical views over the Forth to the Bass Rock and along the East Beach to the Glen and beyond.

28 Volunteers Sandy Forrest, Chair of the Volunteers, gives us an update on what they have been up to. Lots of fundraising and fun!

What exciting times we are living in! The Volunteer Group enjoys a privileged position, whereby we receive regular updates on progress with the planned national marine centre.

The adventurous plans for the new building combine modern clean lines with the red Law sandstone of the historic harbour, which we feel will enhance the harbour area, and provide a thrilling setting for the interactive, immersive and interchangeable exhibits exploring the world of marine creatures.

Consultation and collaboration are central to the plans and the Seabird team has taken on board feedback and listened to concerns raised. At the time of writing this, the team is working on updated plans and we look forward to seeing what will be a stunning asset for North Berwick, East Lothian and indeed Scotland.

The Volunteer Group is continuing its primary work of meeting and greeting visitors to the Centre, but is also busy as usual, raising money for various projects. We focus in the main on children’s activities, funding prizes for quizzes and materials for Wildlife and Holiday Clubs. Some of our Volunteers help the Education Officer with these clubs, which concentrate on introducing children to conservation of wildlife, and care of the environment.

All of these activities need support. If you have a couple of hours free once a week, or even once a month, please come and join us as we shall need even more Volunteers in the new Centre.

A quick email to info@seabird.org will result in a reply from the Volunteer Group and an invitation to come and see what we are doing. If you like what you see, there is no subscription needed to join, you just become one of our friendly band, making new friends and supporting the Centre in the areas where you have an interest.

Hope to see you soon!

Sandy Forrest Chair of Volunteer Group

Give a little:

If you have a couple of hours free once a week, or even once a month, please come and join us as we shall need even more Volunteers in the new Centre.

Scottish Seabird Centre magazine

Volunteers

Puffins up-close

31 Boats It’s been a season of puffling rescues, as our boat guide, James Leyden, tells us.

Taking care of the little ones:

Sometimes there is the need to handle puffins.

One such scenario concerns puffin fledglings, pufflings, as they find themselves unwittingly entangled in our human world.

‘Cute’ is the word that is never too far from the popular conscience when it comes to puffins. As one of the boat trip guides I have come to realise the puffin is probably the most recognisable, if not most popular bird, let alone seabird, in the UK.

Many people take a boat trip simply to see a puffin; it’s so often a ‘bucket lister’! Which, of course, is wonderful but it also presents an opportunity for us to introduce the broader world of seabirds and how it relates and connects to our own lives. It also provides a chance for our team to deliver important messages to accompany the smiles and feel-good factor that comes from viewing puffins up-close.

Although I would ultimately prefer it to not be the case, sometimes there is the need to handle puffins. One such scenario concerns puffin fledglings, pufflings, as they find themselves unwittingly entangled in our human world.

Ideally, pufflings should head out of their burrows at about six weeks by the cover of night to avoid predator gulls and find the open sea whereupon they will spend the next (approximately) three years learning the ways of the puffin. However, sometimes things don’t always go to plan and shortly after exiting their burrow they can find themselves trapped, perhaps in an island building or, even worse, surrounded by gulls. Sometimes they can become very lost and end up wandering around or hiding in nearby towns! A far-fromideal scenario and whilst it will cause that little puffling heart to beat that bit faster, it is the kinder option to pick them up and release them out into their home, the open sea, far from humans, land and gulls.

In recent seasons we have had the added bonus and privilege of releasing several pufflings as part of our Isle of May trips. On the trip home we will stop far from the island and carry out the release, often with the help of one lucky passenger. There are not many people who get to feel the beating heart of a puffin and, whilst the puffins might take issue, I reckon if everybody did this it would be a very different world.

Scottish Seabird Centre magazine

32 Feature Maggie Sheddan, well known for being our senior Bass Rock landing guide, is very much more than a Bass Rock expert.

If one sliver of plastic is found within a food product, we are outraged. If people were found (or our pets) dying a slow death, helpless, entangled in netting or wires, we would be horrified and in uproar! Yet, this is an everyday occurrence in our oceans and at our seabird colonies.

From our largest of sea mammals to the tiniest of crustaceans, it is not “Have they ingested plastic?” more “How much plastic?”.

There is now an acceptable level of ingestion.

Entanglement is a daily occurrence for seabirds, seals, mammals, turtles and other marine wildlife.

Landing with Greenpeace at the Bass Rock, the long colourful strings from disintegrated balloons were easily spotted, paintbrushes, netting, plastic wrappers, the list is endless, as is the supply. On a positive note, carrier bags blowing in the wind that were once a common sight have visibly reduced.

Making a difference:

Regular beach cleans have raised awareness with the general public, and among all sectors of policy makers.

Recently I had a very focused and fascinating day helping Dan Turner with fulmar autopsies at the Dove Marine Lab in Cullercoats (Newcastle University). Dissection completed on three birds, all organs were examined, labelled and bagged.

The main study is the stomach content. There is a glimmer of hope coming from their researchers.

Recent autopsies have shown a reduction in plastic found in fulmar stomachs. There is also a significant reduction in the amount of balloons being released in the Netherlands and hopefully in the UK. Dan has been tireless for many years now with the ‘Save the North Sea’ campaign. Some may remember the live autopsies performed by Dan and Dr Jan van Franeker at the Centre. It was a very bleak picture then. Several more years passed before ‘nurdles’ became an everyday talking point. Now it is wonderful to see how the Seabird Centre’s education officer, Andrew, with visiting schools and wildlife clubs, is highlighting the impact of plastics. Regular beach cleans have raised awareness with the general public, and among all sectors of policy makers.

There is a small improvement in the quality of the North Sea environment, but for the oceans and their inhabitants there is still a very long way to go.

In 2016, Germany awarded the somewhat dubious title for ‘Bird of the Year 2016’ to the gannet due to the synthetic nests and ropes gathered for their nests. Sadly many guillemots flying to and from their cliff ledges were becoming entangled despite the fact guillemots nest on bare rock. In the late 1960s and early ‘70s, researchers and the scientific community were already highlighting problems with plastics in the oceans and, if not addressed, it would become a major problem in years to come.

If only we had listened.

Scottish Seabird Centre magazine

Ocean plastics and autopsies Evidence collection:

Recently I had a very focused and fascinating day helping Dan Turner with fulmar autopsies at the Dove Marine Lab in Cullercoats.

34 Education During holidays and term time, our Education Officer, Andrew, is always kept busy.

Exploring the different tidal zones is always a fun and engaging activity for children, and the thrill of discovery will always fascinate every child that visits us.

We’ve had an incredibly busy summer term, with school groups arriving every day throughout April, May and June for education visits. As ever, we try to ensure that outdoor education is a key feature of the learning opportunities we provide, and so most children have enjoyed learning about the sea and coast whilst out on our beautiful neighbouring beaches.

As the school year drew to a close, we were happy to welcome 23 children to our Summer Holiday Club. Since its inception in October last year, the Seabird Holiday Club has grown in popularity and demand this summer has been high. It’s a fantastic chance for local children to engage with us over several days and learn, not only about seabirds and other marine life, but develop a wide range of skills and interests in scientific subjects, not to mention arts, crafts and outdoor activities.

Exploring the different tidal zones is always a fun and engaging activity for children, and the thrill of discovery will always fascinate every child that visits us. Searching the beach for shells and seaweed is also a good way of interesting children in the natural world and allows us to highlight the problems it faces from plastic and other litter.

We’ve also had success this year with a new Seals & Seabirds workshop, teaching the children about the different species that can be seen in the Firth of Forth and on our cameras in the Discovery Centre. Almost all children find animals fascinating and getting the chance to roleplay a day in the life of a Bass Rock gannet, or make a cuddly seal pup to take home, is a wonderful way of building on this interest.

Another wonderful new opportunity we have been pursuing is working with the Scottish Qualifications Authority to develop some National 5 level coursework ideas that secondary school teachers across Scotland can use with their environmental science students. This would be a fantastic way of allowing teachers and students, interested in the marine environment, to carry out experiments and fieldwork looking at marine conservation. Engaging with the next generation of scientists and conservationists is vital to ensuring our seas have a bright future and this is a great way to start!

Looking ahead, we have lots planned.

With school competitions, new workshops in development and more Holiday Clubs to run, we know that our education programme will be in high demand once more!

It’s a fantastic chance for local children to engage with us over several days and learn, not only about seabirds and other marine life, but develop a wide range of skills and interests in scientific subjects, not to mention arts, crafts and outdoor activities.

Scottish Seabird Centre magazine

The next generation of naturalists Isobel Muckett, age 10, from Tranent

I had a brilliant time at the Seabird Holiday Club. I’ve been twice now and made new friends and learnt amazing things. I think Andrew is a great teacher.

36 Wildlife Club The end of the school year means the end of the Wildlife Club term too. Andrew reflects on a great year.

Another school year reached its end and so too had another Wildlife Club term. During the spring and summer months, our Club members really get the chance to observe our local wildlife in its full glory and this year has not disappointed!

Our Senior Branch had something of a ‘citizen science’ theme to their summer term, as they carried out surveys to check the health and distribution of different species and habitats.

In April, they observed the nesting eiders on Daisy Island. The showy males proved a lot easier to spot than the well-camouflaged females, but lots were counted on behalf of our local countryside ranger service. Over May and June, we also carried out surveys for OPAL, the ‘Open Air Laboratories network’.

We assessed the biodiversity of our hedgerows, the health of our pond life and what can be done to help our pollinators. We were pleased to find that North Berwick wildlife appears to be in a pretty healthy state!

Our Wee Buds and Junior Twigs have also had a busy term. The Wee Buds went pond dipping at North Berwick Law in May and had a magical encounter with the wild pony herd that lives there. The Junior Twigs did a great job searching for insects in the grasslands and meadows. And we were even the stars of CBeebies’ ‘Down On The Farm’! Our Wee Buds group helped out on an episode looking at plastic pollution on the beach. We hope many young viewers were inspired to help clean up our coastline.

Plans:

With our plans for the future, we aim to have more clubs for children and lots of marinethemed activities.

Finally, we ended the term with a trip to Edinburgh Zoo for all our members. We were thrilled to see huge beasts such as rhinos and bears, and smaller creatures like monkeys and meerkats. But the highlight of the day had to be the penguins, who were nesting at the time.

We got to see several fluffy chicks, as well as watch their parents feeding, swimming and gifting small stones to one another.

A wonderful end to a fun-filled term!

Scottish Seabird Centre magazine

Local wildlife in all its glory

Leuchie House:

A break away from the everyday

39

A regular sight at the Scottish Seabird Centre is the minibus from Leuchie House dropping people off to come and for a visit. The Leuchie team bring folks from across Scotland and beyond to the Centre every week or so.

Even if you know North Berwick well, you may never have heard of Leuchie House.

It’s a unique place; an 18th century mansion house set on a country estate just outside North Berwick. Formerly the home of the Hamilton-Dalrymple family, it’s now a respite centre and independent charity providing short breaks for people with multiple sclerosis, Parkinson’s and a wide range of other long term conditions.

People come to stay at Leuchie for up to 11 nights to give both themselves and their families a chance to recharge and get away from some of the stresses and strains of living with a long term condition.

As well as making sure every guest has the personalised, round-the-clock nursing care they need, the Leuchie team is focused on making sure every guest has the best break possible. This means supporting each individual person to do whatever would make their holiday extra special.

As you’d expect, this varies enormously from guest to guest. For some people it’s the chance to reconnect with simple things they used to do but now no longer can, such as going for a pub lunch, a stroll round the shops or a trip to the theatre. Because Leuchie has the staff and adapted transport needed, it all becomes possible again.

For others, it’s the chance to visit new places and attractions like the Seabird Centre, or the Kelpies or a gallery in Edinburgh. And for others, it’s a chance to try something adventurous and challenging that they may not have dreamt possible, like a flight along the East Lothian coastline in a microlight!

We were thrilled to discover recently we’d played a part in helping make one of Leuchie’s guests dream come true – a dream he’d had for nearly 80 years. On his last visit to Leuchie, Ian, who is 84, told the staff that he’d wanted to take a boat trip round the Bass Rock since he was about 5-years-old. Having had a stroke and walking with a stick, he doubted it would be possible now. Because this is exactly what Leuchie is all about, the team were determined to do everything they could to make it happen.

A phone call later, it had been agreed that with the support of a member of Leuchie staff and the team on the Seabird Catamaran Cruise, any access issues could be overcome. However, on the day of his trip, bad weather meant the sailing had to be cancelled at the last minute. A big blow for everyone. But with a fair wind and the determination of both teams, we finally managed to get him off on his trip of a lifetime just before he was due to leave Leuchie. What was his verdict? Even better than he’d imagined.

As well as making sure every guest has the personalised, round-the-clock nursing care they need, the Leuchie team is focused on making sure every guest has the best break possible.

Scottish Seabird Centre magazine

40 What’s on

Second Dr Bryan Nelson Memorial Lecture

Our events programme isn’t just for little ones. We have some fantastic adult events scheduled for later in the year.

Celebrating Coastal Birds Saturday 14 October – Saturday 24 March Included with admission A photography exhibition by Daniel Doran and Tom Langlands Taken over several years by two Scottish photographers with strong links to the Seabird Centre, this exhibition brings together a selection of framed and unframed images celebrating a few of the many birds that can be seen around Scotland’s coastline.

Photographed at many locations – including the Bass Rock and the Isle of May – this exhibition seeks to showcase the beauty of our coastal birdlife through high quality photographs. Some of the species of birds featured in these images are giving rise to conservation concerns through dwindling numbers associated with climate change and diminishing food sources. Other species are surviving well but are threatened by man’s intervention affecting their habitats and feeding grounds.

This exhibition seeks to draw awareness to the beauty and importance of these birds.

A percentage of all sales goes to the charity.

Dr Bryan Nelson Memorial Lecture Wednesday 25 October 19:30 Edinburgh Napier University (Craiglockhart Campus) Lindsay Stewart Lecture Theatre Professor John Croxall: Seabird research for conservation: past successes, future prospects Around the world, the majority of seabird populations are declining – many of them to globally threatened levels. From the puffins and kittiwakes of the British Isles to the albatross and petrels of the southern oceans, species are suffering due to pollution, climate change, commercial fisheries and habitat loss.

Join Professor John Croxall from BirdLife International to hear about the pioneering conservation work that’s been taking place to try and save these precious birds and where this could be taking us in future.

By bringing together expertise from government, NGOs, scientists and local communities there have already been some exciting success stories. For example, great strides have been taken in removing invasive species responsible for predating seabird colonies on UK islands, however there are still many challenges ahead.

Tickets £6 – visit the online shop at www.seabird.org, call 01620 890202 or visit the retail desk in the Centre.

Tom (left) and Daniel (right)

The lecture is being hosted by the Scottish Seabird Centre and RSPB Scotland in memory of Dr Bryan Nelson, who passed away in 2015.

Bryan was the leading world authority on Northern gannets, a renowned global expert on cormorants, boobies and frigatebirds and a trustee and supporter of the Seabird Centre for many years.

Scottish Seabird Centre magazine

Lecture:

Seabird research undertaken and plans for the future

42 What’s on The Discovery Centre team has launched a NEW 3D film experience, which enables visitors to delve deeper into the marine world.

Hosted daily in the Wildlife Theatre (12noon), the NEW 3D experience allows visitors to see a range of films throughout the year, which explore different marine environments and wildlife. The first explores the life of whales and dolphins.

Alex Turnbull, Discovery Centre Manager, said: “As we move forward with our plans to create a national marine centre, we were keen to introduce some more marine-related activities – and the response has been fantastic.

“We have a 3D TV in the Flyway Tunnel and this has always been popular with visitors.

We tested the new 3D film experience with the Seabird Holiday Club, and both the children and adults in this first showing absolutely loved it. The audience was reaching out to try and touch the wildlife, the dolphins, in particular, got a brilliant response.”

Some comments from the public so far have been: “I thought it was amazing. My friends and I were all reaching out to touch the animals. I loved the dolphins the best – they were really cool!” Izzy, age 10, from the Seabird Holiday Club.

Tickets for the 3D experience should be requested on arrival at the Centre. There are showings daily at 12:00 for up to 44 people.

All included with admission: adult £8.95, child £4.95, family ticket £25. Double boat trip and Discovery Centre tickets are also available.

Free for Seabird Members. Ideal for age 3+.

NEW! 3D wildlife film experience in the Discovery Centre

Fun feedback:

I thought it was amazing.

My friends and I were all reaching out to touch the animals. I loved the dolphins the best – they were really cool!

Scottish Seabird Centre magazine

Laura from East Lothian:

That was really fantastic. An unexpected treat!

Ian from Edinburgh:

It was superb to see people of all ages enjoying the 3D film. We will be back to see another one soon.

44 What’s on Autumn means Seal Season and Pirate Weekend – two brilliant annual events in the Discovery Centre.

Pirate weekend:

Prizes for the best dressed salty sea dogs and pirate princesses.

Pirate Weekend 21 & 22 October 11:00–16:00 Shiver me timbers! Pirate Weekend is back at the Scottish Seabird Centre ready to take on another weekend full of swashbuckling fun, on Saturday 21 and Sunday 22 October.

One of the highlights of the Seabird Centre’s events calendar and inspired by the link between Robert Louis Stevenson’s Treasure Island and the nearby island of Fidra, Pirate Weekend is a treasure chest full of fun, celebrating the high seas.

Join us for an X marks the spot competition, show us your sabre skills, try your hand at pirate penny games, and set out on a pirate treasure hunt. There will be plenty of other activities each day from 11:00 to 16:00 including arts and crafts.

Alex Turnbull, Discovery Centre Manager, said: “Pirate Weekend is always great fun and it’s so fantastic to see our visitors dressed to the nines, as salty sea dogs or pirate princesses. There will be prizes for the best dressed, which every year is fiercely contested, and rightly so! It’s brilliant to see everyone make such an effort!”

All included with admission and free for Seabird Members.

Seal season From October Will you be the person to spot the first seal of the season on the Discovery Centre’s interactive live cameras? In 2016, the first grey seal pup of the season was spotted on Tuesday 4 October by Erin Moffat from the Discovery Centre team and she named the pup Mavis.

While looking out for pups, there is also the chance to see a live birth! During October, the Isle of May beach is filled with a huge number of female seals, known as cows, who will give birth over the winter.

If you spot a live seal birth, not only will you have the chance to name the seal, but you will be awarded with your very own seal adoption pack.

Alex Turnbull, Discovery Centre Manager, said: “For anyone visiting us who sees a seal pup birth live on camera in the Discovery Centre will be awarded with their own seal adoption pack worth £30. With around 2,500 births taking place each year on the Isle of May between October and December, and around 6,000 seals on the Isle of May at the peak of the season, there’s a really good chance of spotting one – if you keep your eyes peeled!”

The Scottish Seabird Centre is also reminding people to stay away from any seals and pups that are seen on Scotland’s beaches. While they may look cute they can be dangerous and will bite.

A pup may look abandoned, but it is very likely that its mother is close by. If they get human scent on them, they could be abandoned.

Seals also carry bacteria which are extremely dangerous to humans and other animals. If members of the public see seals in distress, whether pups or adults, they are advised to phone the Seabird Centre on 01620 890202 or the Scottish SPCA on 03000 999 999.

Scottish Seabird Centre magazine

While looking out for pups, there is also the chance to see a live birth!

Alex Turnbull, Discovery Centre Manager:

It is quite amazing to see this wildlife spectacle, knowing it is just a short distance away on the islands.

46 Kids Activities for big ones and little ones alike. Enjoy!

Spot the difference!

There are six differences between these two pictures. Can you find them all?

Hidden facts: Find all the different species of dolphin in the wordsearch. The first remaining letters will spell out a fact about dolphins!

BOTTLENOSE DUSKY RIVER SPOTTED

CHILEAN GUIANA SNUBFIN STRIPED

COMMON HOURGLASS SPINNER WHITESIDED

E O C A P S E E V B P E N M E T R U H E P S O O U I T O F T H E W R I A G T T E N R K I P N O F R G L T U E F N L B O R N H T D T L E Y I F E F F E T M S M F E R A A H A R O V Q N N X C N Y D W S N F N I B R L N L O V D K A K S W R A S O G H S D E D I S E T I H W W C U E N O M M O C U F Q R X S Y J C Q T P U L V X D J N M O U N A S J C R T R A D E T T O P S R X Z B U Y R S X L Y W V Y Z N I F B U N S O O O B L N Z G

Scottish Seabird Centre magazine

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Step 1: Paint your peg the colour of your chosen sea creature (anything with a mouth will work!). Leave it to dry. You can also add patterns and other colours if you like.

Step 2: Cut out any fins, tails, wings, flippers or legs that your creature needs. You can use coloured card or paper for this, or colour-in white paper.

Step 3: Glue the body parts onto the peg (in the right places!).

Step 4: If you have any spare pegs, why not try some different sea creatures too?

Scottish Seabird Centre magazine

Make your own snapping sea creature You will need: – a wooden clothes peg – paints and paintbrush – coloured paper or card – scissors and glue

Party time!

Stand out from the crowd with a party that will inspire!

From £15 per child

www.seabird.org 01620 890202

Image © Sean Bell / Scottish Charity no SC025837

OPEN ALL YEAR DISCOVERY CENTRE · BOAT TRIPS · CAFÉ · GIFT SHOP

Control the cameras and zoom in on the super-cute seals.

Seal season from October. www.seabird.org 01620 890202 The Harbour, North Berwick EH39 4SS Image © Maggie Sheddan / Scottish Charity no SC025837

DISCOVERY CENTRE · BOAT TRIPS · CAFÉ · GIFT SHOP V661-17-251-aw-01.indd 1

11/09/2017 21:53

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