It is always impressive to see the northern lights dancing and Vatnsnes is a good place to experience the northern lights. There, Hvítserkur himself (a famous sea stack) is leading the pack with the Peninsula Skagi as a background, it doesn’t get much better than that. Here are some pictures from 4. September as there is a lot of activity these days.
The number of tourists at Iceland’s Seal Center is increasing. There has been a very good attendance at Selasetur Íslands this summer and over 16,500 visitors have already visited us.
The largest number of visitors came in July, when 5,541 visitors came to the Seal museum, while August followed close behind with 5,171.
Just over 43% of visitors entered the Seal museum this summer. But others sought, e.g. information about where you could find seals in the wild and/or shop in our store.
A total of 595 seals were seen in the great seal count, which took place for the twelfth time on July, 30th on Vatnsnes. But due to special circumstances, Heggstaðanes was not included that day.
The Icelandic Seal Center would like to thank all the volunteers who took part in the count this year. This year we received e.g. volunteers from Germany, Belgium, England, and a good group from World Wide Friends located in Hrútafjörður (wf.is).
Volunteers Needed at the Icelandic Seal Center Come join us for our annual Great Seal Count at the Icelandic Seal Center. We need groups of volunteers to count seals along the coastline of the Vatnsnes Peninsula.
Saturday, July 30 at 13.30, the Great Seal Count will be held by the Icelandic Seal Center in Hvammstangi. We encourage everyone to participate, whether you are a local, landowner, or tourist on your trip around the country. Participation gives people the opportunity to see harbor seals in their natural environment.
Program for the counting day:
At 13:00 is the delivery of data, presentation, and training at the Seal Center. Coffee and drinks are available for participants.
At 15.00-19.00, the seal count takes place. When you are finished, register data online or submit of the data inbox at the Icelandic Seal Center.
Information for field participants
It is important to count only seals that are “inside” your area so that each seal is only counted once
You write down the all seals you can see, whether they are on land or at sea, also write down the time!
REMEMBER! Not all of you will see seals, but is important to us to know where the seals are and how many. So even if you do not see a seal, that´s very important information to us.
Please walk carefully and do not make noise since that may scare the seals away before you can count them! For same reason, please do not bring a dog
Close all gates, respect the animals in the area and do not walk over cultivated land (crops)
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This is a wonderful opportunity to volunteer with the Icelandic Seal Center. We are dedicated to developing sustainable wildlife tourism and research and education on the status of the seal populations of Iceland. We rely on volunteers like you to help us with our research. The seal count aims to support further research by gaining knowledge of the number of seals in these areas and continuing to develop sustainable tourism in wildlife viewing.
The counting consists of counting seals in Vatnsnes and Heggstaðanes, but the area will be divided into many different areas (about 2-7km long) and everyone should find a distance that suits them. The large seal count is a fun experience and it is well worth coming and participating in the center’s research work. Before you head out on the peninsula, there will be a short presentation about the Great Seal Count along with information about the research at 13.00.
Do you have a passion for marine wildlife?If yes, volunteer 🙂
