This week we are hearing from Andrew Clarke, another of our hatchery Interns who has been excelling in his role with us at the lobster hatchery!
Hi, I’m Andrew and I am a student at the University of Stirling in my 4th year and this summer I am working as an intern at the Forth Marine Hatchery to get a deeper understanding of systems and the biology of lobsters and their life cycle.
It’s been an incredible opportunity to get hands-on experience with marine life, something I’ve been itching for outside of my studies. As a Marine Biology student, I was extremely intrigued by this opportunity and excited to get experience in the field before graduating.
The internship kicked off last month, and I can honestly say I’ve loved every minute of it so far! After a couple of weeks training, me and the other summer intern Bella Johnston were trusted to run the hatchery for the summer.
I have learned so much about aquaculture systems and lobsters in the last month. From mastering aquaculture systems to understanding the ins and outs of lobster development, I’ve already picked up a toolkit of skills I know will serve me well in the future. For example, in the last week I have been training new volunteers and interns for the role. The extra hands around the hatchery lets me dedicate more time to roles in charity such as running our social media pages and leading our “Be a marine biologist for the day” activities for children.
My daily tasks involve feeding larvae and counting in new hatches, alongside running our two RAS aquaculture systems. I also handle daily cleaning and maintenance tasks like water testing and tidying the hen tanks, keeping an eye out for lost eggs and general debris. The hens get checked a few times a week so that we know when they have hatched all of their eggs and are ready to be released!
I love any hands-on experience with the hens, and my absolute favourite part of the week is releasing them back home. For a few hours each day we also set aside time to engage with the public. This part of the job has greatly helped me consolidate everything I’ve learned at the hatchery so far, as well as keeping my general marine biology knowledge tip-top to ensure I can answer any questions the public have about what we do here.
Recently we ran our first “be a marine biologist for the day” session of the summer, where we taught the kids about what we do, guiding them through the hatchery and letting them help with daily operations before doing some rock-pooling and shore identification! It went really well and experiences like this really remind me of why I fell in love with marine biology as a kid.
So far, this internship has given me the chance to connect with marine life in a completely new way. It’s the first time I’ve worked directly in a marine biology/aquaculture setting, and I couldn’t be more grateful. This experience has, and will continue to give me essential skills and knowledge for my future career in marine biology. More importantly, it has truly reinforced my passion for marine life and the pursuit of a career in conservation.
It is a very exciting time to be part of the operation as the Forth Marine Hatchery establishes itself, I’m sure we are just getting started! Stay tuned for more updates from the hatchery and Balanced Horizon over the summer!