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Humpback whale Photo Judith Scott

‘My Life With Whales’ by Judith Scott

‘My Life With Whales’ is an eye-catching title to a talk to be given by Judith Scott at All Saints Church in the Old Town on Friday 18 March 2022 starting at 7.30pm. HOT’s Zelly Restorick connected with Judith to find out more about her experiences with these magnificent manifestations of life.

Judith Scott with a grey whale

“I work as a whale watching guide in Iceland and Antarctica”, explains Judith. “I have also recently been working in South Africa, Norway and Mexico with whales, so I have done a lot of whale watching – including working with humpback, orca, sperm and blue amongst other species!

“I first fell in love with whales as a child and wanted to work with them since then. I don’t know why they have always fascinated me, but they continue to do so, even though I have now been on thousands of trips with them. So this is what my talk is about: ‘My Life with Whales’ – using my photos as illustration. I have also recently been working on a ship in Antarctica, so this will also form part of the talk.”

Photo Judith Scott

“I am really not sure if I can put into words what fascinates me about whales, but they are undoubtedly very charismatic – and help us care about nature more due to their size, intelligence and charisma. As we work more and more with them, we get to know individual whales, as we can tell them apart by natural markings – and this helps to maintain our interest, as we start to see the same animals coming back year after year.”
Does Judith have a favourite place for whale-watching? “I don’t really have a favourite place. I like them all for different reasons as every place is different.
“Some whales are surviving well and increasing in numbers, while other species are in decline and close to extinction. It is different with each species and each area. They are of course hugely influenced by human threats, pollution, plastic, over fishing, climate change, noise etc etc. There are just loads of things we humans do that affect them.”

Baby grey whale in Mexico Photo Judith Scott

It’s free to get into the talk, although the church is asking for donations to cover the cost of heating, etc. No need to book.

Judith was brought up here in Hastings and her parents still live in town, which is why she is here, in between jobs. She flies back to Iceland on Sunday for the summer season of whale watching.

‘My Life with Whales’ (20 years as a whale watching guide):

All Saints Church, Old Town on Friday 18 March at 7.30pm.

For more information about Judith Scott, her work and experience, check out her website: Judith Scott.

Orca surfacing Photo Judith Scott

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Posted 15:13 Tuesday, Mar 15, 2022 In: Nature

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