Aquarium

[Hoyden]

I am a diver at the National Aquarium in Baltimore. We dive one full day every other week.

A typical day for a volunteer diver at NAIB begins at around 8 AM in food preparation. We prepare (measure, chop, mix, insert vitamins, etc) the food for the day for the animals in the two exhibits in which we work. This also includes washing dishes and cleaning the food prep area when we are finished. At 10 AM we have a dive briefing given by the Dive Safety Officer and by the aquarist in charge of our exhibits. At 10:30, we dive (one diver stays dry to give a speech and act as surface support) in the Wings in the Water exhibit - home to a variety of rays, tarpon, sharks and a green sea turtle. At 11:30, we dive (one diver stays dry to act as surface support) in the Atlantic Coral Reef exhibit - a ring tank with a large variety of fish. In both of the exhibits we dive, we are responsible for feeding and cleaning as well as any additional tasks assigned by either the DSO or aquartist. We have lunch, another briefing at 2PM and then another dive in each exhibit. We are done for the day by 5PM. On occasion, we have the opportunity to work in other exhibits and do special event dives. Every third dive day we dive in the dolpin tanks to scrub before the regular dives of the day.

That is the rough outline - what it doesn't convey is how cool the experience can be. I have met some of my best friends while diving there and my dive team socializes outside of the aquarium often. Even cooler is the chance to interact with marine animals in a way not possible in the wild. Most members of my dive team have an affinity for a particular animal in one of our exhibits and have developed "relationships" which them. Some of the animals are able to distinguish between individual divers (even though we are all dressed alike and use the same equipment) and express preferences for the attention of those divers. I consider it a priviledge to dive there and would encourage anyone with the time and a strong interest in marine life to consider it. You can find more information on the NAIB volunteer dive program at NAIB Volunteer Diver Program Information.

Jackie

 

[mike_s]

I've often mused about volunteering at the Audubon Institute's Aquarium of the Americas in NOLA, but I just don't see how I can do it. Their requirements for volunteer divers are:

• Be a certified SCUBA diver through any of the major certification agencies (PADI, NAUI, SSI etc). We’re sorry, but the Aquarium cannot provide initial certification.
• Have a minimum of 25 logged open water dives
• Be over the age of 17.
• Have a valid dive physical and must be approved by a physician for diving.
• Complete 30 hours on the floor as a volunteer Naturalist Guide.
• Be CPR certified (we provide classes on a regular basis).
• Become a certified scientific diver through AAUS (we provide this certification on a regular basis).
• Be available for one shift per week for a year. Weekday availability is preferred, but weekends are a possibility as well.

The 30 hours of non-diving volunteer work would be a pain -- the screaming field trips that were abundant last time I went to do a day's photography were such that I actually found a dark corner in which to decompress for a while before returning to the fray. :biggrin:

As for certifications, that seems rather trivial. You just have to be a diver and CPR certified to begin with, as they'll work you through your AAUS scientific diver cert (which I seem to recall has significantly more swimming than PADI's reqs, but it's morning, and I may misremember).

The part that just won't work for me is a shift a week for a year, preferably weekdays. Even if only half the shifts are weekdays, that'd be something like 26 days I'd have to take off work, and I don't get that much time off. (Even if the shifts are only partial days, with travel time, I'd have to take the whole day off work.) Perhaps if I were closer, or if their requirements were less onerous, I could volunteer. (I'd *love* even to be a window washer.) As it stands, there just isn't a way.

That was about the same thing I got from the Tenn Aquarium. I forgot to add that you have to work 2 week days per month. You also had to do a lot of non-diver volunteer work. Sounds like to me that they get lots of people wanting to dive and no one wanting to do other volunteer work, or not enough of it, so they suplement the work force by making the divers do other work. They also had these other classes or meetings you were having to attend.

it just wasn't worth it for their crazy requirements then. Now with gas prices that are $2/gallon higher, it'd run me $60-$85 round trip in gas for "that experience" now.

 

[tardmaster]

I've entered the dive program at the georgia aquarium. I'm a divemaster, but the requirements for us were only to be an open water diver. You did have to have a current CPR certification and pass their swim tests. Their swim tests are roughly equivalent to the divemaster swim skills. In addition to that, you have to commit to one four-hour dive shift per week, 3 times a month with the fourth shift being an "on the floor" or "non-diving"shift. Pay for your own physical ($370). All in all, I have no problem with all of the requirements. It keeps quality in the tanks.

 

[Trixxie]

I talked to the Tenn aquarium about volunteer diving several years ago......

from talking to the person, it sounded like you spent more time mopping up the floors and doing other non diving cleaning than it did you spending actually diving.... I decided against it.

A couple years later I checked into it again for several of us that were interested. They only said, let me send you some forms and you have to attend "these meetings". Info will be in the forms. When we got the forms, they wanted all kinds of info on you to perform a background check and credit check, agreement to contact your employer, ... etc. you had to sign agreement to all this (invasion of your privacy). None of us was interested after that and threw the forms in the trash. I just felt like more like they wanted slave labor to clean stuff more than they wanted people who wanted to volunteer to help. We weren't interested in driving a couple hours to be treated that way... (just my opinion. I know someone else who did it and was ok with it though for comparison purposes.)

It may have changed since you looked into it but I LOVE volunteering at the Tennessee Aquarium. Ok, I have to scrub on the first dive but then get to hunt for Sand Bar Tiger teeth and the coolest are Sand Tiger teeth.

Then I get to go across the way and feed either the fresh water exhibit with Sturgeon, Bass, huge cats and all sorts of other fish and then clean or feed the Gulf of Mexico with bonnet head sharks, sting rays, all kinds of reef fish and 6' moray eels. All to the delight of the Aquarium guests. It's a trade off depending on what day it is. One dive will be a cleaning dive and the other will be a feeding dive.

I can say I have been bit by a shark and lived to tell about it. LOL! Actually the little bonnet heads sometimes get carried away and they try to sample my hand while it's in the food bucket. It's really quite amusing.

We had to sign some forms, pass a written exam, swim tests and a buoyancy circuit but no biggie. For me it was worth it to be able to swim with sharks and so many different types of fresh and salt water fish. Even when it's 32 degrees outside in the middle of January.

I don't dive for GA Aq, but I do volunteer there. Not saying one is better than the other but only thing the divers get to do at Ga is clean and maintain the exhibits. They don't interact with the animals at all AND they have to pay to be a volunteer....??? we also get more 'perks' from the Tennessee aquarium and overall they really do make us feel appreciated and we can have our own Dr who knows us complete a physical form, not visit some Dr who does not know us from Eve and pay them $370.

Just my .02

Thanks

 

[Dr Neil]

I've been a volunteer diver at the Virginia Aquarium for eight years. It's a great experience!

Where else can I go and regularly dive and work on basic skills (performing demonstrations for guests), hand feed fish, and dive in 70 degree water year round!

Aquarium diving is not for everyone, and at the Virginia Aquarium you have to be on the Dive Team a minimum of 6 months and dive the original aquarium before you are eliglible to try-out for one of the newer aquariums.

The aquairium holds tryout twice each year for new members. Besides the dive certifications qualifications, the aquarium also requires CPR, 1st aid, and backboard training for all team members.

 

[seaducer]

I volunteer at the Adventure Aquarium in Camden NJ...Adventure Aquarium | Camden, New Jersey, Philadelphia

In addition to what most everbody else has posted, here are some other thoughts.

You are on display just like the animals are. People love seeing divers, especially kids. Part of your job is to entertain them, but also know that the animals are the stars, so don't get in their way too much either.

In my aquarium, we put on shows for the public. One show is a diving demonstration, on is hand feeding rays and fish, and a new show we just started in the Shark Realm to educate the public about sharks and sawfish. Some of the time you are just floating around and doing diving stuff or goofy stuff for the kids, and some of the time you are talking to the public. If you get stage fright, might want to work on that a bit.

Remember the animals live there, and you don't. Try not to spook them, and give them some space. Some animals will approach you, and that is really cool. It is neat when a 400 pound sand tiger shark comes right up to you, brushes against you like shes scratching an itch then goes on her way. This Saturday while performing the Shark show, one of the sawfish settled near my feet (we are supposed to stand on the bottom for this show, for safety). She was litterally right on my fins and I wasn't sure how long she would stay there. Not too many places in the world where you can do that!

I look forward to my dive day, which is every 2 weeks. It is a very cool day, I like the people I dive with, and I love the animals. I am happy I tried out. Give it a shot, if you hate it you can just quit, but I don't think that will be the case...

 

[pawclaws]

Why give it away if you can get paid for it?

At least three of the large aquariums housed in the casinos here in Las Vegas pay divers for their services. Not much, I'm sure, but if you're not doing anything else...

I've seen Mandalay Bay, Golden Nugget and Silverton occasionally having openings on their employment websites. I applied once to the Golden Nugget, hoping I could work just weekends and fit it into my regular work schedule, but they needed someone from 8 am - 12 noon, Thursday thru Monday. Rescue diver, 02 and EFR certs were the only requirements.

 

[tardmaster]

Why give it away if you can get paid for it?

At least three of the large aquariums housed in the casinos here in Las Vegas pay divers for their services. Not much, I'm sure, but if you're not doing anything else...

I've seen Mandalay Bay, Golden Nugget and Silverton occasionally having openings on their employment websites. I applied once to the Golden Nugget, hoping I could work just weekends and fit it into my regular work schedule, but they needed someone from 8 am - 12 noon, Thursday thru Monday. Rescue diver, 02 and EFR certs were the only requirements.

First of all, I dont want to move to vegas. Secondly, the georgia aquarium doesn't pay and even if they did they couldnt pay me enough to replace my engineering salary. I'm doing this because at minimal cost i get to dive with whale sharks, hammerheads, golaith groupers and even beluga whales......on a daily basis if i
chose to. While doing something that I absolutely love, i get an education on the creatures that I didnt know a lot about. I get to practice and improve my dive skills more frequently than 95% of the diving population. Lastly, as a profesional diver, all of my expenses are tax deductable. That is why "I" give it away for free.

Thank you......I'll now hang up and listen.

 

[The_DivePirate]

To start with, diving in aquariums is a very satisfying job. Without the volunteer divers the tanks would be a real mess. I've been diving for the Oregon Coast Aquarium for the past two years and have had some real great times. I've also encountered some real political BS, but if you keep in mind it is for the good of the critters in the tanks and for the publics enjoyment, it makes it all worth while. The other thing to remember is, they use the useable. If you make yourself available, be ready to be used! You will most likely not regret the experience.

Joe

 

[ManBearPig]

I am a diver at the Georgia Aquarium... When I joined you had to be Rescue Diver or higher....CPR trained...pass a physical of their doctors ans pay for it and pass their swim and dive tests (an OSHA test for commercial divers)


But it has been GREAT..where else can you dive and swim in the LARGEST Aquarium in the world with 4 whale sharks and the rest of the 80,000 species of fish in the morning...then dive with Beluga whales in the afternoon..

Best thing I have done..

Todd

Good to hear as I just did the orientation session for GA Aquarium yesterday. Still not sure of what all the prereqs are now, but you do have to volunteer at least 36 hours doing other stuff before one is even eligible to talk about diving. Also need to get my o2 and first aid certs. We will see what the other hoops are, but I am sure it will be worth it. Not bad to live 1,000' above sea level and be able to dive 3 miles from my house!