Visibility/seastate:

• If visibility is 1, please do not carry out a Shorewatch.  
• Please don't watch in above a Seastate of 4 (unless on the North Coast or West Coast)

 
Distance estimates:

• Please take the distance from your watch point - this way the mapping will work.  

 
Reticules:

• Reticules are always counted DOWN

• On the database, rets are in .25 increments up to 6 then in 0.5 increments

• Even if you see the animals during your naked eye scan, you can still list bearing and rets through bins

 
Non-cetacean sightings:

• Seals, basking shark, etc get their own line on the sightings side of the (hardcopy) page and can use all the same details as cetaceans

• When entering data, you will record this as a 'non-cetacean marine animal' sighting and then record them on the sightings entry screen along with cetaceans.
•  

Confidence:

• Please note your confidence as either 100, 75, 50 or 25%

Boats

• Trialling recording jets / helicopters in 'other' boats and then recording type in notes.

• Boats - fishing boats should be listed as either SM or LM but can been noted as fishing boats (and actively fishing or not) in notes 

 
Sightings

• If you have a sighting, please record it on the back rather than just in the notes so that we can collect the correct details.  
• More notes are always better: this was a really large group, really far out… we couldn't ID, etc.
• Mixed pods are currently listed as two different sightings but with a note in each of the comments to ensure that it is a mixed pod.

 
Thank you!
 
Happy Watching.