Residential on Reserve (More than 4 weeks) (Bumblebee surveys and wildflower nursery work, RSPB Onziebust, Egilsay, Orkney)

We are looking for help with our bumblebee surveys on RSPB Onziebust, Egilsay from mid june for 2 months. One of the UK's rarest bumblebees, the Great Yellow bumblebee, is now confined to flower-rich habitats in the far North and North West of Scotland, including here on Orkney. We survey our wildflower meadows for it and other bees, such as the scarce Moss carder every year.

It would be useful if you had some fieldwork experience but full training will be given in the survey methodology and bee and plant identification. You will need to have good observational skills, be thorough in your approach to work, be willing and able to write up detailed field notes each day and input data onto spreadsheets.

You will also be working in our wildflower nursery where we are growing additional key pollinating plants for our wildflower areas. The work will involve:

• making up plug/pot plants from seedlings
• Planting out plug/pot plants
• Daily watering and basic maintenance
• seed collecting

Again, full training will be given.

For this role, you must at times be prepared to work on your own, when reserve staff are busy with other tasks and it is vital, to some extent, you can organise your own time and workload. Even in summer, the weather on Egilsay can be inclement and you must be patient and flexible enough to reorganise and re-plan on a sometimes daily basis.

You will also have the opportunity to be involved in other reserve work. For example:

• the tail end of the breeding wader work, mainly curlew monitoring
• the tail end of the Hen harrier monitoring work on RSPB Trumland, Rousay
• estate work: for example: basic maintenance of visitor infrastructure

The reserve is a working farm and there will be ample opportunity to experience farming activity and you will see at first hand how farming and conservation can sit side by side and deliver for wildlife.

Egilsay is a beautiful island and you will be surrounded by sea, sky and wildlife, but it is small and living on such a small and remote place can be challenging.

Accommodation will be in a small cosy self contained bothy, fully equipped and with a log burning stove. The perfect place to wind down after a long day. The Bothy is a good sized one bed unit with twin beds. So, we are looking for a single person, a couple or two friends who are happy to share accommodation.

Please apply by 25th April 2025

For more information please contact:

Vicky Anderson

Mobile number: 07516588145

vicky.anderson@rspb.org.uk