Our group came from Alcester Grammar School in the West Midlands. Our expedition group consisted of four year 12 students and 14 year 13 students and our supervisors were our teachers, Mr. Gill and Ms McLean. Everyone in our group who came onto the expedition were very eager about the study of ecology and biology as a whole and so we were all passionate about the trip and had an enjoyable time whilst out in Fiji.

Fundraising for the trip was done in many different ways. as a group we had no group fundraising pot but rather did so individually. Many people such as myself got jobs to help fundraise for the trip for example I (Harry Benton) got a job working at McDonalds to help fund the trip, taking me 6 months of working. Another of our group setup a quiz night and raffle helping them to raise somewhere in the region of a brilliant £800 for the trip.

Everyone on the group prepared separately, but we had a few meetings on the lead up to the trip to help us prepare, as well as some extra activities that were needed. We were given a list to help us pack what we would need, to ensure the expedition went smoothly and was enjoyable including medical supplies and rainforest friendly clothes. We were also informed on the importance of biodegradable wash products so we had to locate some for the trip, which was kindly donated by green people. This company was a good call, as their products were made from 100% biodegradable products which we would be able to safely use in the rainforest without damaging the delicate ecosystem that is found in the area. We also managed to get these products for free, in exchange for publicity for their products which allowed use to easily acquire biodegradable products whilst raising awareness for a brand. We were also taught the customs to use for when we stayed with the locals for 1 day and 2 nights so we could create a welcoming environment for the locals that were hosting us.  In preparation for the marine week on the Fiji expedition, we were recommended to acquire a PADI diving license which would allow us to start helping the onsite researchers a lot quicker as we were already qualified to dive. Most of the group went on to do this, with some deciding to learn at the site. Some of us had already earnt a diving license so we arranged a day after school, in which we met up at the local leisure centre to have a refresher on diving in a pool, in which we were shown hand signals and procedures for assembling and disassembling the gear. We also managed to get a sponsorship from the company Gul which allowed us to have wetsuits for the diving sections of the trip. Without these suits we would have been less prepared for the trip when we arrived, having to borrow the wetsuits that were already there.

The trip began at Alcester Grammar School on the 12th of July 2019. We had a brief meeting with the trip leader Mr. Gill before loading the minibus for Heathrow. From there we had a 13hour flight to Singapore where we spent an hour or so making our way to the connecting flight to Nadi, Fiji which was another 10 hours. After our arrival we had another small flight to Savusavu where we had a nice meal in the harbour before getting the bus to the homestay village of Vusaratu where we were greeted with a warm welcome and fed some traditional Fijian food before going to bed with our homestay families. The house was very nice and welcoming especially after having travelled such a long way to get there. Me and one other student were staying with one of the older residents of the village and was keen to take care of us and make us feel as if we were part of a family. We each had our own room that was fully prepared for

us with mosquito nets being hung over both our beds to protect us from the mosquitoes. In the mornings we were treated to many delicious foods for breakfast, the highlight being the scrambled eggs and bread that we were provided with which had a very unique taste compared to their counterparts in England. Our homestay was very curious about our lives and so we were happy to talk about our experiences in England and how we were enjoying Fiji. The first day in the village of Vusaratu we were given a village tour where the locals showed us their way of life and things that people would do on a normal day in the village such as mat-weaving and collecting certain plants for medicine or for earning money. Later that day the locals treated us to a lovo dinner on the beach before we went to bed ready for the big hike up the hills to the forest camp the following morning. The hike up to the forest camp was long, slow and difficult in the heat of the day however we did all eventually make it before lunch and our afternoon activities. We had planned to take a coach up to the start of the trail, but it never arrived so we had to start our walk from the village, letting us take in more of the surroundings than we would have.

The 1st week in the forest camp was worked on a rota of spiders, habitats, butterflies and birds. Every day each group did something different until they had completed all of the tasks. My personal favourite was the butterflies as we managed to catch a butterfly that has never been found in the Natewa peninsula before. Although the butterfly was not a new species it had never been recorded in this particular area, so it was a very exciting moment for our group. Once all was done we had to leave the beauty of the rainforest behind for the marine camp. The views there were breath taking over the bay which is the largest bay in the south pacific. during the second week we carried out underwater surveys or some people got their PADI certification or like me, went snorkelling. On the Wednesday morning I stepped outside the tent to see everyone on the beach looking out into the bay during what was meant to be breakfast. To everyone’s surprise, there was a whale out in the middle of the bay where everyone was staring in awe. The rest of the time in the water camp we played various card games when we were not out in the water. After an amazing time in rural Natewa bay we sadly headed to Nadi for 2 nights in Bamboo-backpackers where we went to the garden if the sleeping giant and the Sabeto hot springs. before embarking on the long journey home.

What did we gain and learn from taking part?  We gained knowledge on how the job of ecology works in a real life setting and the types of conditions people work in for the type of job they do. We also gained an appreciation for different cultures from the other side of the world and how different their way of life is to ours, whilst learning about their way of life and how it differs from ours in a more developed country and discovering their viewpoints. Every night once we reached the forest camp and then the marine camp, we were provided with a very engaging lecture on the ecology of the islands of Fiji, some examples of the types of lectures we were given were about the different types of coral and fish in Natewa bay and how to identify and categorize these. Another lecture we were given, that was in the forest camp, was about the different types of islands in Fiji and how the positioning of these islands affected the migration of different species, such as birds and of course humans. We also learnt of the endemic species that were only found on the island that we stayed on Vanua Levu and more specifically the Natewa peninsula, for example the Natewa silktail and Papilio natewa (a swallowtail butterfly). We left with an overall greater understanding of the subject of ecology and more so the ecology of Fiji which will be very useful for the future for all of us if we go into the field of Biology, and a perfect way to get into ecology as a fulltime job. Even for those that do not want to go into ecology, the experience is an invaluable source of information and experiences that will make all of our group stand out from the rest of the crowd, showing our high interest in amazing projects such as this one. It may in the future even lead to some of us being the pioneer of a new discovery in the field, thanks to this expedition.

We are 16 students from King Henry VIII School in Abergavenny, South Wales. In the summer of 2019, we went to Dominica, the “nature island” of the Caribbean. Dominica is the most mountainous and biologically-diverse island in the Lesser Antilles, home to 9 dormant volcanoes and hundreds of different species of endemic flora and fauna. The expedition involved a week in the jungle followed by a week by the sea. We helped collect data for Operation Wallacea and the collaborative world-renowned scientists and university students. In 2017, Hurricane Maria hit Dominica, devastating the island. Consequently, the research we collected is some of the first evidence of the effects of the hurricane on the island. Our school group was comprised of 15-19 year olds, who saw this expedition as an once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

As a group, we used several fundraising methods in order to raise money for this expedition. Firstly, we decided to write sponsorship letters to send to various companies. From these letters we were able to gain sponsorships from six companies, raising a total of £634.20.We decided to set up stalls at some events, including a school fete, in which we raised money from games such as throwing/kicking a ball through a hole and guessing the sweets in a jar. From these events we raised £149.16. The biggest fundraising event that we carried out was a quiz which we held at a local pub that kindly allowed us to use the pub for the evening. During this we hosted around eight rounds of questions with an interval in-between. We raised money from tickets that we sold to people who wanted to attend the quiz, from food that was made by the owners of the pub and sold during the interval, and from raffle tickets that we also sold during the interval – the prizes from which were announced at the end. The total amount of money we raised from this event was £400.66.

Another fundraising method that we used was taking sponsorship forms around and asking for small donations from people. One time we used these sponsorship forms was at a rugby presentation day, where we took a form to people who had attended the presentation and generally gained donations of 50p to a £1 from everyone there. We also set up Easy Fundraising and Just Giving accounts, using the Easy Fundraising account to raise smaller amounts of money throughout the year, raising over £200, and the Just Giving account to gain donations for our sponsored event, whereby a group of us counted our steps every day (via our phones) and aimed to walk the distance from Abergavenny to Dominica in steps, updating the amount of steps we had done every week or fortnight on a website we had set up. We raised over £150 from this. The website we set up was not only created to show a record of our steps, but also to show information regarding the fundraising activities we had done and were going to be doing, information about why we were fundraising and what the expedition was about, and a sponsorship page to show the companies that had sponsored us. The total amount that we raised as a group, not including any individual fundraising via part-time jobs and other activities, was £1716.72. Also, as a school, we raised money in order to reduce transport costs through buying and selling Krispy Kreme donuts during break times or lunch times in our school. Most of the individuals in our group also raised a lot of money through their own part-time jobs.

When applying for the Murray Foundation Award, we compiled information from the various fundraising activities we had done into a power point. Similar to the paragraph above, this power point showed the process we went through in our fundraising efforts and the amounts of money we raised from each activity. The power point also provided images from some of the fundraising activities, highlighting what we did in our fundraising efforts.

There were several aspects that we had to consider when preparing for the expedition. Firstly, we had to have a basic understanding of the types of wildlife we were likely to encounter when completing the various surveys on the expedition. To do this we used materials provided by OpWall and our school regarding the different types of wildlife. Secondly, we had to ensure that we were fully prepared in terms of the kit we needed to take, and to do this we used kit lists provided by OpWall an our school. We had to buy certain items that were needed for the expedition, some of which were more expensive due to being environmentally friendly and biodegradable, which therefore added to the overall cost, and so we needed to carry out further fundraising in an attempt to cover some of these costs. We also needed to have necessary vaccinations to prevent from certain diseases that could have been caught in Dominica, which meant making doctor’s appointments before the expedition. Furthermore, we had to ensure that our travel documents were in date to allow us to travel to Dominica, meaning that some of us had to update our passports, and this had to be done at least six months before we left. Our PADI documents needed to be completed in order to allow us to snorkel or dive when in Dominica, particularly for people with asthma who wanted to dive as this needed to be checked by doctors or specialists first. Additionally, we needed to attend several school meetings over the course of two years in order to keep up to date with all the necessary information for the expedition. We also needed to take certain amounts of US dollars and Eastern Caribbean dollars, therefore meaning that we needed to exchange some money at a travel agency or post office. Finally, we had to ensure that everything we needed to take to Dominica fitted in our bags, and was organised in a way that would be simple to unpack when we were in Dominica in order to find necessary items for each day.

On the 6^th of July, we woke up at 01:00 in the morning to take minibuses to Gatwick airport. Armed with at least 2 rucksacks each, we boarded a plane to Antigua, the flight taking more than 8 hours. Our last two days of luxury before we arrived at camp consisted of experiencing exciting Caribbean cuisine, swimming in bath-temperature seas and staying in a hotel. By the 8^th, we were sleeping in tents in the middle of the Dominican jungle.

In the first week, we stayed in an eco-lodge which is designed for tourists but is taken over by Operation Wallacea for 2 months of the year.  We bathed in a pool formed by a nearby river and were fed by local cooks. We had to cross 3 rivers to reach our camp, with one coming up to our waists. We took an active part in many different research projects including:

• Mist netting – We woke up at 05:00 to catch birds and stayed out till midnight catching bats. However, Hurricane Maria has meant that the majority of the canopy has been destroyed, therefore increasing the amount of light reaching the forest floor. Subsequently, shrubbery has dramatically increased, including the invasive razor grass. This has meant space for birds towards the forest floor has decreased. Consequently. We caught a limited amount of birds and bats. Despite this, feeling a bats fur and identifying different species was an amazing experience and many of us were astounded by the size and speed of the Dominican bats. One group saw a pair of imperial parrots, which was extraordinary considering that it is believed that there are only about 20 of these birds left on the island.
• Insect surveys – Led by Dr Erica McAlister, a world-renowned scientist from the London Natural History Museum, we caught flies and other flying insects with sweep nets and pooters, which involved us sticking our faces in nets and sucking up flies through a tube! Apparently some of the species we caught are now being displayed in the Natural History Museum!
• Volcanology Day – Robert Watts, a volcanologist monitoring Dominica’s 9 dormant volcanoes took us on a tour around the island, explaining the structure and formation of the island due to historical volcanic eruptions and also the potential dangers posed to the current Dominican population. He then took us to Trafalgar Falls, an amazing 100m waterfall and plunge pool where we could swim. To reach the pool, we had to walk up 200-300m of boulders and were therefore led by a local guide.
• Snorkelling- We travelled to Champagne Reef, which was on the Western side of the island. It is called this due to the Carbon Dioxide vents in the coral reef. There are only five countries in the world that have these vents, caused by volcanic activity below the sea bed. pH levels at the reef are around 7, contrasting with the usual ocean pH  level of 8.1. This is extremely useful, because ocean pH levels are predicted to reach 7.7 in the next 100 years due to climate change. Therefore Champagne Reef can be used as a sort of trial to see how ocean acidification will affect marine life and biodiversity.
• Catching anoles- We caught anoles with a noose on the end of a stick. There are two types of anole (lizard) on Dominica, the native anole and the invasive anole. It is feared that the invasive anole is slowly pushing the native anole to higher altitudes, with potentially the prospect of extinction for the native anole. However, as we went up to Freshwater Lake to catch anoles, located at around 650m above sea level, we only caught the native species of anole.

On the 13^th, Dominica was hit by a storm, which had previously been classed as a hurricane. Sudden downpours of rain covered the island all night and into the morning, meaning we were unable to leave the camp as the rivers blocking the entrance had risen by a metre in the matter of hours! Luckily enough the rivers had returned to their usual levels by the next day, so we were able to leave the camp to travel to Fort Shirley, the old French and British fort situated in the North of Dominica, where we stayed during the second week of our expedition. We travelled to the fort via boat, hoping to see some whales, however we only saw flying fish (which were still pretty spectacular!).

During the second week, students had a choice; we could either complete our PADI Diving Course or we could snorkel, collecting data and attempting to spot different marine life. Two students completed their PADI Diving Course whilst the other fourteen took part in the coral and fish surveys for Operation Wallacea. As part of these surveys, we learnt how to identify different species of fish (e.g. clown fish, scorpion fish, lizard fish, angel fish and damsel fish), sponge, corals and invertebrates. We also calculated the percentage composition of the coral reef on a 50m transect by identifying what was under the tape measure every 25cm (coral, invertebrate, rock , sand, algae). Given most of us had never dived or snorkelled before, it was a pretty surreal experience doing it for the first time in the Caribbean Sea!

By taking part, we all gained a significant experience of what travelling could be like if we chose to take a gap year or wanted to see the world. We saw first-hand the magnificent lives of scientists, and therefore realized how the work we study in school links to that. We learnt that living in a different country (even in a tent) is well worth it, even if some people find it challenging at first. This experience has inspired many of us to focus on pursuing biology or geography-related occupations and has made us realise that the variety of jobs available to us is wider than you can imagine. Furthermore, we were able to explore new cultures in the Caribbean, and met new people from Canada, U.S.A and scientists from around the world.

We spent the £1000 award by putting it towards the travel to Gatwick airport for all the students. This meant the cost of the trip dropped for each student, meaning we had a little more money to spend on buying equipment to prepare us for our expedition. We also bought matching turquoise hoodies so we were easy to spot! This meant the teachers were less stressed and more confident when we were travelling.

To conclude, we would like to say an enormous thank you to the Murray Foundation. You had a massive contribution in sending us on the most amazing experience of our lives!

Mexico was never a country on my travel bucket list; I had no real idea of what any of it was like and had never really considered the nature it might contain. Tropical dry forests were not a habitat type that would have entered my mind when I was daydreaming about the natural wonders I might like to see, and they had never been presented to me as a habitat under immense threat from climate change (this might instead be replaced by tropical rainforest, in both situations). So I was going in rather blind, driven by some gorgeous photos and an enticing description of the bird diversity project, when I chose my project in the Calakmul biosphere reserve in southern Mexico.

After a soul-destroying 4:30am start, followed by a 10 hour plane journey I was greeted unawares by the best burrito ever to grace my mouth on arrival to Cancun. Another agonising 4:30am start for the 8-hour coach journey into the forest was sweetened by the excitement of my imminent arrival into the mysterious jungle.

Arrival to the Mancolona camp, despite my stiff back from the journey and discovering that I was due for ANOTHER 4:30 start the next morning, did not disappoint. I was surrounded by sunlight seeping through a gorgeous green canopy, with the sounds of unknown creatures, tantalisingly close, tempting me already

And then came the animals. Even before I began the week’s survey, I had noticed the fascinating trails of the leaf-cutter ants, cutting across the paths between the tent and the hub of science and food. Once the week had got up and running and provided me with a collared forest falcon outside my tent, a sheep frog on the way to a midnight bathroom trip and a scorpion in the shower, along with countless more species of all groups outside camp, I was enthralled I the forest and ready to begin my dissertation research

The next 5 weeks were spent at various different camps, going on bird surveys; both point counting and mist netting. Stupidly early starts were more than made up for by the grand total of 116 species of birds that I had never seen before in my life. Some highlights include spending two weeks sleeping in a hammock in the heart of the southern forest (Dos Naciones camp), being charged by a howler monkey and seeing my life flash before my eyes (!!) and discovering the most colourful and beautiful beautiful bird species’ I have ever seen (e.g. the green honeycreeper and the collared aracari). I was able to get hands-on experience taking measurements of birds caught in mist nets, and learn more than I could have imagined from a birding genius named Ezequiel.

This really was the experience of a lifetime, and I am so grateful to the Murray foundation for the financial support they gave.

Shelter competition between Lionfish and Caribbean spiny lobster

The invasive lionfish, Pterois volitans, is native to the SE Asian Pacific. Following it’s hypothesised release off the coast of Florida in the 1930s however, the species has spread throughout the Mesoamerican reef system. Lionfish now pose a large threat to many crucial reef species, such as herbivorous (algal grazing) fish, which are essential for maintaining coral dominated reefs. Such fish can effectively mediate reef resistance to phase-shifting to algal dominance in the stead of Lionfish.

P. volitans however, eat many juvenile fish, produce up to 20,000 eggs at once, and have few, if any, natural predators in their invasive range. Reports from fisherman also suggest they may be negatively affecting the charismatic Caribbean spiny lobster; the effects of which are two-fold. Ecologically, lobster are a keystone species on Caribbean reefs (acting as important scavengers and predators), helping to support a healthy reef system. Economically, they represent a major source of income for many coastal dwelling Hondurans, with exports yielding over $100 million annually.

My experiments whilst working with Opwall in Honduras this summer aimed to examine how lionfish may be affecting lobster in terms of sheltering (critical to their lives, as they spend much of the day hiding from predators). I performed my tests by collecting specimens from the local reef of Ensenada and conducting lab behavioural experiments in tanks containing a single shelter, for which the species must compete. Individuals were first acclimatized for 24 hours in holding tanks, before they were transplanted to trial tanks. Here, over a second 24-hour period, the interactions and shelter use of each species was recorded for each trial utilizing an IR camera (lionfish + lobster, lionfish alone or lobster alone) with hope to demonstrate whether the lionfish is indeed having an effect on lobster sheltering.

The video data analysis consisted of measuring the relative times each individual spent either active or inactive whilst near or within the shelter. These measurements, we predict, will accurately yield an indication of how natural sheltering behaviours may be altered by heterospecifics. Other behaviours of interest were also noted, including lionfish fin flares and lobster antennae whips. Following the lab trials, the lionfish were dissected, and morphological measurements were recorded. This data will also be included in our analyses to examine whether physical characteristics explain the observed interactions and behaviours.

On the reef, we also performed coral habitat assessments on shelters and in areas that both lionfish and lobster use naturally, to observe what distinguishing features they prefer in their refugia. Using this data I will be determining a ‘background’ reef assessment, to characterise the reef’s ‘average’ structural characters, before performing specific Lionfish/Lobster shelter assessments (on refugia in which they have been found). From here I will compare the assessments to determine how the shelters used by each species may differ from the reef average, and in what ways (ie. more or less rugose…). An overlap in shelter structure characters between the two species would provide one explanation for any shelter conflict, however we are yet to reach such conclusions.

My time in Honduras did not solely consist of work however! Over the 7-week trip I would dive twice per day on beautiful and incredibly healthy Caribbean coral reef. I was lucky enough to spot a massive range of great finds, from a 8-9ft nurse shark to 2mm Sea Goddess Nudibranchs! Between diving and data analysis, with the large group of other Opwall students, I would fill my time by snorkelling just offshore in search of rays and barracuda, kayak on the lagoon, play beach volleyball, swim in the house pool and run my own mini beach cleans.

I was fortunate enough to have the opportunity to spend 6 weeks in Gondwana Game Reserve in South Africa this summer, it was an amazing experience that I’ll never forget.

My own project focused on the distributions and habitat preferences of the large herbivores within the reserve. How these large herbivores utilise and impact on the typically nutrient-poor, endemic fynbos vegetation is relatively unknown although it is important information for solid conservation management. To collect the data, we carried out several transects – recording species, GPS location, numbers, habitat type and several other factors every time any large herbivores were seen along the transects.

However, we were all also expected to chip in and help out with the other projects and research going on in camp, rather than just focusing on our own individual project s. I was slightly apprehensive about that going out to South Africa, but actually working with the group of other dissertation students carrying out bird point counts, vegetation surveys, collecting elephant dung for stress hormone analyses and creating a habitat map of the reserve was one of the highlights of my trip. I was very lucky to end up in such a great group where everyone got on so well, it really made the whole experience that bit extra enjoyable.

In addition to being part of a great group of students, the staff were all amazing as well and I can’t thank them enough for making my time in South Africa so special, I wouldn’t have a bad word to say about any of them. They were all so nice and friendly as well as being some extremely knowledgeable and inspiring people that were only delighted to help or just chat with us students.

Meeting all these awesome people, hopefully making some lasting friendships, learning about fynbos, and interacting with these amazing animals in such an amazing setting was a privilege and an experience I will never forget. I am so glad I took this opportunity with Opwall and WEI, it might just be the best decision I’ve ever made. This taste of field work has definitely helped me realise that this is what I want to do in the future.

Unfortunately, my time in South Africa had to come to an end at some point but I could’ve happily stayed on for at least another 2 months. Now that I’m back home I suppose it’s time now to analyse the data I’ve collected and actually write up my dissertation. While it doesn’t quite compare to being in the field, I’m actually not dreading reading and writing about this project as I am genuinely interested in it. If it all goes according to plan, I hope to investigate some of the reasons behind the habitat preferences of the large herbivores. In particular, looking in to how the different species of herbivore partition resources and assessing the potential for interspecific competition for the limited resources within the fenced reserve. Finally, I hope to tie in how the landscape of fear affects the distributions of the herbivores and determine whether the different herbivores are selecting areas for the resources present or if they prefer more open areas with good visibility where they can see any would-be predators coming.

The Fynbos Biome is a unique part of the world with amazing wildlife, I thoroughly enjoyed my time there and am extremely grateful to everyone who supported and helped me get there and make the most of this once in a life -time opportunity.

From the moment I selected my expedition with Operation Wallacea I was in absolute awe of Gondwana. I spent six weeks of my summer in Gondwana Game Reserve, South Africa conducting research for Operation Wallacea and for my master’s project.  When I arrived at Gondwana, I couldn’t believe I was there, having to pinch myself to make sure it was all real. The scenery itself was just breath taking, alongside the encounters with the wildlife throughout my stay.  Gondwana was my first time in South Africa and it provided me with a lot of first experiences!

My project “The Relevance of Primary Productivity for Ungulate Habitat Selection in The Cape Floral Region, South Africa” primarily focused on the use of the Game Transect data collected on Gondwana. These were conducted every day via a 4×4 vehicle along predetermined transects routes. During these surveys is when I saw my first impala, wildebeest, eland, red hartebeest, bushbuck, bontebok, springbok, rhino, zebra, giraffe and elephant! Data collection included GPS coordinates, distance bearing, habitat, visibility, number of individuals, sex of individuals and herd condition. This survey was a new methodology to me and provided me with new skills including use of equipment for measuring and counting, species id and sexing of individuals.

My project relied on another type of survey, habitat mapping, newly developed for this year’s expedition. This was also a new methodology to me but very quickly myself and the other dissertation students picked it up. Following the same game transects, plant species were identified in patches which allowed broad habitat types to be classified. Patches were drawn on QGIS to create and overall habitat map; a first created for the reserve! Already having experience with GIS from my master’s course, I found myself helping other students to use the software. This allowed me to increase my own confidence in the software and give help when required to other people. I also used GIS to produce NDVI maps for my project, something I had not even heard of before my project and now find super interesting. My project excited me every day, as every day was different in terms of the data that was collected and what wildlife I was going to see.

I participated in other surveys during my time in Gondwana including bird point counts and vegetation surveys. The bird point counts always meant a very early morning, but the beautiful sunrises made the early starts worthwhile. Not to mention, watching the high diversity of birds dancing through the Protea and Erica plants learning each distinctive bird song. Without a doubt, you would see a new plant species every day during the vegetation surveys, counting 20 different species in quadrats, sometimes more. I could even put my own camera trap out in the vegetation plots. Waking up every day with butterflies in your stomach with excitement for the day ahead of you truly made writing my master project very special to me.

Around the data collection I had many breath-taking first-time moments too, from the starry night sky, the intense sunsets, encountering lions for the first time, finding the mythical buffalo, seeing a baby rhino to the elephant herd coming up to the vehicle with each one being as magical as the other. Even speaking to the staff, research assistants, field guides and reserve conservation mangers inspired me and motivated me to complete my masters and continue in the conservation sector. Gondwana is a very special place and certainly an experience I will hold in my heart forever.

A mission to save the scary-looking but charismatic long-spined black sea urchin

It has been months since I have returned from an expedition with Operation Wallacea and I am still living through my memories as it was still happening. I am so grateful that I had the opportunity to spend my summer in Honduras looking into the aspects of slow recovery of a local keystone species, long-spined black sea urchin. The generous financial gift towards my expedition costs from the Murray foundation made an immense help to my funding the trip.

After a rather stressful journey, that took me through the US, where I unexpectedly spend two nights at the airport because my flight was cancelled. I arrived in Utila, a small but vibrant island of the coast of Honduras. Warm and friendly welcome by the staff, the sun and the ocean made me thrilled about the upcoming six weeks and put me into an expedition mode right away. In the first two weeks I was taking the reef ecology lectures and was offered to complete my PADI rescue diver course, while already diving into the ecological surveys looking for the spiny creatures, baby corals, and fish. After the reef ecology lectures, I managed something I though was impossible, I was able to identify all the hard coral species, macroalgae, fishes, and invertebrates and everything underwater started to look real and more exciting.

Me and other three girls from Princeton University together with our project leader worked on the sea urchin project. Our role was to assess biotic and abiotic factors that might have led to a slow recovery of the long spined black sea urchin. We were diving twice a day, six times a week, so we soon developed an effective way of collecting our data. Identifying past-swimming fish while laying a transect line, spotting minuscule corals, or finding well-hidden sea urchins became a second nature. We were collecting data on the demographics and population density of the urchin, its heterospecific species, coral recruit species, competitive herbivorous fish, predators, temperature, habitat structure, and benthic cover. After each dive we compared our counts and inserted data into an Excel sheet and had a video of the benthic floor to analyse.

So far, we know that the urchin is an essential herbivore in the Caribbean coral reefs and in ideal conditions it maintains the health of the reef by grazing on the overgrowing macroalgae. However, since the 1980s after a major mortality event when over 90% of the urchins disappeared from the Caribbean, the fast growing macroalgae started taking over and are now suffocating the much slower growing and more vulnerable corals. Several factors have been suggested as the reasons for the slow recovery. Starting with insufficient habitat complexity, increasing the water temperature, pollution, and compromised reproduction success by the low-density population.

The scientists from Operation Wallacea and university students have been gathering data on this topic since 2013 and even though there is a clear general understanding of the issue, more research into the specific variables is required so the knowledge can be successfully applied to helping the sea urchin recovery.

And why does it all matter? Why do we need more hard corals and less macroalagae? Hard coral cover is the marker for a healthy reef because its structural complexity creates a unique habitat for millions of other marine organisms. However, we depend on them as well, as they support fisheries, tourism, and provide coastal protection during storms, hurricanes, typhoons, and even tsunamis. Therefore, it is in our best interest to keep the coral reefs, not only in the Caribbean, thriving, which proves to be one of the greatest challenges of today marine conservation efforts.