Nelson-based Louisa Hawkes is calling on locals to take action and sign up for Project Jonah’s Marine Mammal Medic courses, set to run in Tāhunanui and Golden Bay this December.
Although the courses aren’t until December 2025, spaces are already filling up quickly — a sign of growing interest in protecting our precious marine wildlife.
Project Jonah, a registered charity dedicated to the rescue and welfare of stranded marine mammals, trains everyday people to respond to strandings.
“New Zealand has one of the highest numbers of whale and dolphin strandings in the world — around 300 animals strand on our shores each year,” says Louisa, who has been involved with the charity for almost 13 years.
“Golden Bay is one of the most common areas for strandings. It’s a long sandspit that juts out into Cook Strait, creating shallow waters and navigation challenges for whales.”
The training course is hands-on and made as realistic as possible.
“We use the same rescue equipment in trainings that we’d be using in a real stranding,” says Louisa.
“We even have life-size models of a pilot whale and dolphin, filled with water to match their actual weights — almost two tonnes for the whale and 200kg for the dolphin.”
“The more medics we have, the better prepared we are to save lives when the next stranding happens,” says Louisa.
To sign up for the Tāhunanui or Golden Bay courses, visit www.projectjonah.org.nz or email info@projectjonah.org.nz
