Volunteering, anyone?
Are you looking for an opportunity to volunteer your time helping wildlife? Willing to help collect data on species and their habitats? Maybe you want to teach others about fishing or hunting. Chapter 5 of the 2015 State Wildlife Action Plan lists education and outreach efforts as one of the fundamental strategies needing implementation in South Carolina to benefit priority wildlife species and their habitats. In particular, SCDNR and its partners should “promote volunteer participation, both in education and outreach programs as well as in data collection. ”
There are many opportunities for the public to help gather information that biologists and researchers can use in assessing species and their habitats.
Sometimes our biologists need seasonal help with specific projects. That’s when our volunteers become vitally important. Listed below are some citizen science weblinks. Some are for SCDNR programs while others take you to our conservation partners’ websites.
Sea Turtle Volunteering:
- Document the presence of Loggerhead Hatchlings
- Report stranded or dead sea turtles to the hotline at 800-922-5431.
- Report live sea turtle sightings.
- The SCDNR Marine Turtle Conservation Program webpage lists cooperator beaches and websites to direct them to volunteer opportunities. These may include relocating nests above the high tide line and marking nesting beaches with signage.
- Adopt-a-nest to support the Sea Turtle Nest Monitoring Program.
- Volunteer with the Sea Turtle Rescue Program through the SC Aquarium in Charleston.
Diamondback Terrapin Volunteering:
Diamondback terrapin turtles are native to the brackish coastal tidal marshes. You can volunteer to report seeing this species. Injured diamondback terrapins can be reported by calling 1-800-922-5431 or taken to a local wildlife rehabilitation center.
Eastern Coral Snake :
- Help SCDNR and University of Georgia’s Savannah River Ecology Laboratory (SREL) gather occurrences of snake species in SC.
- Provide detailed data on the distribution of reptiles and amphibians of North and South Carolina through the Carolina Herp Atlas.
Article: https://www.dnr.sc.gov
