from 2,242€

Excellent 4.8rating (13)

Short-Term Dolphin Care Assistant

location
4 - 4 weeks  ·  Age 18 - 50+

rating  Excellent 4.8  · 
  Verified by Volunteer World
  Excellent response rate

Highlights

  • In-water encounters with the wild and friendly Dolphins of Ponta; enjoy time in their space while assisting on the dolphin boat.
  • Boat Based Whale Watching (July to October)
  • World class surfing
  • Scuba diving and shark diving courses available.
  • Beautiful and safe village lifestyle

Especially good for

Age 18+
Singles
Couples
Families
Groups
50+

About the program

Experience Mozambique in 30 Days. Volunteers can expect to have regular in-water encounters with wild dolphins while collecting and entering baseline data.

Our project

Our mornings start early in Ponta! If we are launching one can expect to be up at sunrise in preparation for the days dolphin sessions at sea. After a quick cuppa and snack you will head down to our dolphin center where you will assist with guest preparations for their encounter with wild ...

About the program

Our project

Our mornings start early in Ponta! If we are launching one can expect to be up at sunrise in preparation for the days dolphin sessions at sea. After a quick cuppa and snack you will head down to our dolphin center where you will assist with guest preparations for their encounter with wild dolphins in the open ocean. This will include assisting with welcoming and registration, pre-briefings and gear allocation. 

This normally takes about an hour, after which you will head to sea with the Dolphin Team to look for dolphins and whales during season. Once located, time will be spent collecting data that includes photography, acoustics, environmental and behavioral. 

Time is dedicated to the capturing of ‘fin shots’ for the Dolphins of Ponta id project. A set of steady sea legs, a good eye and some photography skills might find you behind the lens. Private cameras can be brought along to help with the project and your images will be added to the extensive data base.

Depending on dolphins behavior, we will enter into the water for observations and further collection via underwater video & cameras. Volunteers will be asked to undertake certain tasks in the water which may include assisting participants, photography and dolphin counts. One can expect to be at sea for around two hours at a time depending on sea state.

Once back on land volunteers assist with de-briefing participants, rinsing & sorting gear. Time for a quick hour break with breakfast before heading to the office where specific post launch activities take place that include camera cleaning, capturing and sorting of days images and data. After a two hour lunch break, the afternoon is spent working on other tasks. 

An early dinner is served and the evening is yours. Turtle season may find you accompanying local monitors on their routine walks which are set to the tide (ever changing).

Project location

DERC is situated in Ponta do Ouro on the southern most tip of Moçambique, bordering South Africa. To the south, there is a long line of forest covered dunes, 100m in elevation. At Ponta point, the coast swings to the west, creating a leeward protected bay. The area of the town is 10 km2, & located 117 km south of Maputo. 

The area is characterised by a warm sub-tropical climate. The warm currents from the Agulhas determine the temperature, the composition of the sea water &, indirectly, the north-south orientation of the coastline. The rainy season broadly coincides with the hot months, between November & March, though most provinces have some rain for seven to nine months of the year. Winter is July to September, but in the coastal areas the average temperature generally does not fall below 12 degrees celsius in the evenings. The continental shelf extends about six NMs offshore with the easterly seaward boundary extending to 3NMs. The predominant Agulhas current flows strongly south while inshore countercurrents flowing northwards occur commonly. 

Volunteer Work

Generally work time is until 4pm daily except for Saturdays and Sundays where work will finish after post launch activities. Volunteers are allocated one off day per week to explore the area, surf, scuba dive, kite board, sup or simply just chill. As tourism is seasonal, there are times where you can experience much down time. During peak periods though, we are in full swing and you can expect to work long, hot hours with extensive visitor & dolphin interaction. Participants will share the daily routine, with each person designated a specific job per time period. Volunteers may be called upon to assist with animal strandings, turtle monitoring, & guest educational & snorkelling sessions. The program caters towards individuals wanting field experience, tourism experience, or simply a career break or sabbatical. 

The first week of the program will be spent working closely with team members in training & learning set protocols, in order to maintain the integrity of the project.



Typical day

The daily obligations of our volunteers include

  • Waking up early and being on time!
  • Boat based and in-water data & image capturing
  • Land based observations
  • Data entry & image cropping/cataloguing
  • Dolphins of Ponta fin id and adoption project
  • Preparation of educational, information boards
  • Educational ...

Typical day

The daily obligations of our volunteers include

  • Waking up early and being on time!
  • Boat based and in-water data & image capturing
  • Land based observations
  • Data entry & image cropping/cataloguing
  • Dolphins of Ponta fin id and adoption project
  • Preparation of educational, information boards
  • Educational orientation with tourists
  • Bone/skeleton preparation, cataloguing & reconstruction
  • Tourist / lodge surveys 


Free-time activities

During ones free-time there are a number of other activities one can participate in.

Scuba Diving - One is able to dive or qualify as a scuba diver through one of the permitted operators in the area.

Swimming - is possible in the bay of Ponta do Ouro

Water sports - includes surfing, lessons and board ...

Free-time activities

During ones free-time there are a number of other activities one can participate in.

Scuba Diving - One is able to dive or qualify as a scuba diver through one of the permitted operators in the area.

Swimming - is possible in the bay of Ponta do Ouro

Water sports - includes surfing, lessons and board hire available



Requirements

Requirements

Minimum Age: 18 years

In order to join the program you need to be at least 18 years old on the program start date. There might be exemptions if you can provide the permission of your legal guardian(s) or if your are accompanied by your parents.

Language Skills

You need to speak English (fluently)

Nationality Restrictions

No restrictions. Helping hands from all over the world are welcome.

Other Skills

Fluent in English, Portuguese a bonus. Computer literate (microsoft & applemac excel) Comfortable on / in / around the ocean Comfortable with public speaking/presentation

Time Commitment

Your helping hand will be required on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday from 05:30 - 16:00

What's Included

What's Included

Services by Dolphin Encountours Research Center

Accommodation 

Breakfast and dinner 

Training for specific tasks

DolphinCare contribution

Field trips ~ 3 per week weather dependent

Mentoring by the Dolphin Team

Dolphin Pack (t-shirts to be worn on duty, certificate of attendance, pictures & dolphin diaries from your stay; information on our dolphins, research & interesting reference papers

Snorkel tax

Gear use (mask, snorkel and fins)

Return Transfer Maputo International Airport

Airport Pickup at Maputo International Airport

Accommodation

Volunteers are accommodated at our Volunteer House in Ponta do Ouro.

The house comprises of two bedrooms with a shared bathroom as well as an outside cottage that sleeps two people sharing with a shared bathroom. Rooms come with linen as well as bath towels (please bring beach towels).

Meal are served at the volunteer house and are prepared fresh by our local cook Tina who caters for both normal and vegetarian diets.

Food & Beverages

Dinner and breakfast included. Options normal or vegetarian.
Drinks not provided.

Internet Access

Limited access at the project site

What's NOT included?

What's NOT included?

Flight Tickets

The nearest airport is Maputo International Airport (MPM) in Maputo. We assist you to find cheap flights to Mozambique. FIND CHEAP FLIGHTS

Travel Insurance

Going abroad is an adventure and it is always best to be prepared. Sudden illness or injury, cancellation or theft - a travel insurance for Mozambique provides security and is a plus to have. GET A QUOTE

Vaccines

If you are intending to volunteer in Mozambique you should seek medical advice before starting your social journey. Check your required vaccinations for Mozambique. VACCINE CHECKER

Details on arrival

The project operates year-round although there are some weeks we are closed. 
We will generally start each four week program on the first Monday of every month, each holding a maximum of 4 participants. 
Additional weeks can be arranged upon request. Bear in mind, when deciding on your period of volunteering, December to February is summer, hot & humid; & June to August is cooler (nights a brisk 10-12 degrees), but drier.
Availability
Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec

Program fees

4 weeks 2 days 2,242€
Average fees 523€/week

Program fees

523€ per week 4 - 4 weeks Age 18 - 50+

Payment methods

Visa Master Card Maestro American Express PayPal

NO CREDIT CARD FEES


Duration

4 - 4 weeks

Deposit

The deposit is simply to reserve your volunteer placement. Payments are handled by PayPal, our trusted global payment provider. If you don't have a PayPal account, you can also pay using a credit card.


Final Payment

Your final payment will be agreed with Dolphin Encountours Research Center during the application process. Common solutions are either via bank transfer or a cash payment at the project site.


Meet your organization

Dolphin Encountours Research Center

Excellent 4.8 rating (13 reviews)

Non-profit - founded in 1995

Verified by Volunteer World

  Excellent response rate

Coordinated by

Angie

Spoken languages: English

About the project

Educational and ethical marine mammal tourism in Mozambique that funds the longterm monitoring of dolphins and whales in a partial marine reserve.

Meet your organization

Dolphin Encountours Research Center was founded in the 90’s for the purpose of educational and ethical marine mammal eco-tourism that would fund a longterm monitoring and conservation project. The project undertakes research motivated, boat based eco-tourism activities which focus on close-up encounters with dolphins and whales while following the specially developed DolphinCare code of conduct that limits the amount of stress caused from this species specific tourism. 

Swim with dolphin tours started in Mozambique during the mid 90’s and has subsequently grown as an industry that by now also incorporates humpback whales. Sustainable and ethical marine mammal tourism policies and regulations are priority within a country that has a coastline of 2500km. For us at the Dolphin Encountours Research Center, sticking to these policies and regulations has the highets priority! The safetly and well-being of the marine mammals that we are swimming and diving with is our top concern. However, to ensure that these species aren't threatened in their natural habitat, longterm monitoring and thus swimming with them in their realm is unavoidable.

Our mission is to create a safe space for marine mammals that are subject to human disturbance in Mozambique. Therefore the Dolphin Encoutours Research Center promotes ethical marine mammal tourism practices which includes that we offer our own tours for a stress-free ancounter between tourists and mammals. To ensure this, we also provide an education for our tourists, the local community and our operators about the policies and regulations. Furthermore we conduct a continued long-term monitoring of the animals in their natural habitat. 

As a volunteer at the Dolphin Encountours Research Center you will be able to help us on both on land and on a boat/in the water! You undertake specialised dolphin & whale eco-tours that support the longterm monitoring of marine mammals in the Ponta do Ouro Partial Marine Reserve. 

13 reviews · rating4.8

Kunsang Choedon rating4.8

2022 at Short-Term Dolphin Care Assistant

I really love this project. Angie is a dolphin whisperer and she literally knows all the dolphin by their names and it was so wonderful to see dolphins circling around her like dancing. I was so so close to them. Early in the morning pretty much every day (unless the weather is bad)you go then in ...
Ramin Seifarth rating5

2020 at Short-Term Dolphin Care Assistant

I decided to spend 4 weeks in the Dolphin Encountours research Center and it was a great decision. It was my first time in Africa so I had a lot of questions before I arrived. Angie and her Team are well organized and answered every question I had. We had lot Dolphin sightings and some nice ...
Carolin Kalmbach rating5

2019 at Short-Term Dolphin Care Assistant

Meeting the local Bottlenose Dolphins for the very first time was such a breathtaking experience. Watching them interacting in such a friendly manner with us humans. The way they showed their interest towards us and especially looking at their relationship with Angie was such a wonderful way to ...
Marijke Algra rating4.6

2019 at Short-Term Dolphin Care Assistant

I came to Ponta for five weeks, and it was an amazing experience! Lots of swimming with the dolphins, and in my case we were even lucky enough to swim with several other cool animals (for example some sharks, a manta ray and turtles!). I also really enjoyed the free-time activities in Ponta, like ...
Jess Skye rating4.8

2016 at Short-Term Dolphin Care Assistant

Angie has built a relationship with these dolphins over many years and it is a privilege to be able to join her and swim with them. Her respect for them and their safety is paramount at all ...
Emma Unknown rating4.6

2016 at Short-Term Dolphin Care Assistant

We had such a wonderful time with Angie! She has so much knowledge to share and you can see the connection she has with the dolphins, they just love and trust her so much. She is definitely the original and best one to go to in Ponta! Highly recommend her ...

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