Here - Operation Wallacea

Transcription

SCHOOLS BROCHURE 2015
www.opwall.com
WHAT IS OPERATION WALLACEA?
SCHOOL EXPEDITION OPTIONS
Operation Wallacea is an organisation funded by tuition fees that
runs a series of biological and conservation management research
programmes that operate in remote locations across the world.
The various biodiversity surveys being run as part of the Operation Wallacea
programme are mostly carried out by university academics and university
undergraduates acting as Research Assistants or completing independent
research projects. However, there are some tasks that need a much greater
amount of manpower than available just from university students. These
tasks are being carried out by groups of high school/sixth form groups from
the UK, other parts of Europe, North America, Asia, Australia and Africa who
are generally accompanied by their biology, geography or environmental
science teachers (although teachers from other disciplines go with the
groups). These groups join the mixed teams of scientists and undergraduates
but undertake their own programmes.
These expeditions are designed with specific wildlife conservation aims in
mind - from identifying areas needing protection, through to implementing
and assessing conservation management programmes. What is different
about Operation Wallacea is that large teams of university academics, who
are specialists in various aspects of biodiversity or social and economic
studies, are concentrated at the target study sites giving volunteers the
opportunity to work on a range of projects. The surveys result in a large
number of publications in peer-reviewed journals each year, have resulted in
30 vertebrate species new to science being discovered, 4 'extinct' species
being re-discovered and $2 million levered from funding agencies to set up
best practice management examples at the study sites. These large survey
teams of academics and volunteers that are funded independently of normal
academic sources have enabled large temporal and spatial biodiversity and
socio-economic data sets to be produced. They provide information to help
with organising effective conservation management programmes.
The expedition programmes are led by university academics and have
numerous students from around the World completing PhD or Masters studies
as well as a large number of undergraduates either gathering data for an
independent research project for their degree, or gaining experience of working
on a wide range of biodiversity assessment projects. In addition there are
doctors or other qualified medical staff at most of the sites and at some sites
training is given in expedition medicine either to pre-med students or on
medical elective programmes for recently qualified medical graduates.
Groups of sixth form/high school students in their last two years before going
onto university can join these biodiversity survey expeditions as long as they
are accompanied by a teacher. The school groups are required to collect data
for at least part of their expedition which helps with the research objectives
and publications for that site. However, during their two week expeditions the
school groups also have the opportunity to work alongside a range of
different field scientists and learn about the survey techniques and species
encountered. There are lecture series at each site which provide background
information about the habitats and species and which are tied into many of
the concepts learned in pre-university biology, geography and environmental
science courses. In addition the group receive skills training and in many of
the expeditions this includes dive training to PADI Open Water level as well
as completing aspects of forest or bush survival training.
There are two week expeditions available at each of the sites for 16 – 18 year
old students and are ideal for those who are studying biology, geography,
environmental courses or who are interested in conservation. Manuals
outlining the programme of skills training, academic lectures and practicals
to demonstrate the differing types of surveys being undertaken and the field
research to be carried out, are provided to the students in advance of the
expeditions and are available to download from the Opwall website
(www.opwall.com). Training is also given in how to prepare for the expedition
and how to fundraise.
The expedition itineraries vary considerably. In Indonesia, Mexico,
Madagascar, Honduras and Dominica the first week is spent in tropical
forests and the second week on coral reefs. In Peru the programme is based
for the two weeks on research boats within the Amazonian rainforest whilst in
Cuba the project is mainly based on reefs with some mangrove lagoon
surveys for manatees. The Ecuador project is in cloud forest for the first week
followed by lowland forest for the second week. In South Africa the first week
is in one of the game reserve research sites with the second week on reefs.
In Guyana the first week is lowland rainforest followed by a canoe based
survey for one week on a river. The Transylvanian project, in the foothills of
the Carpathians, is helping with assessing the management of a Special
Conservation Area with bears and wolves. New for 2015 are the expeditions
to China with one week on the Tibetan plateau and one week working in the
Changqing mountains with pandas and other species. In Greece there is an
expedition to one of the remoter Dodecanese islands with a mix of island
ecology and marine research projects and a second week learning to dive.
For north American schools in France there is a week helping with
biodiversity research in the Cevennes followed by a mobile expedition to
national parks in southern France and northern Italy to study the ecology of
habitats from the Mediterranean to alpine meadows.
CONTINUING PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
Teachers who chaperone the expeditions may have the opportunity to earn
Professional Development hours or Continuing Education units while in the
field. The ways in which this is implemented varies enormously between
countries and states.
For example: In the US Professional Development or Continuing Education
Unit requirements tend to be state-specific. (see
www.iedseminars.org/ceu_info.cfm for details by state).
In Australia, the Professional Standards for Queensland Teachers (December
2006. Standards 6,7 and 9) may apply (see www.qct.edu.au).
For further details please visit www.opwall.com
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WHAT IS OPERATION WALLACEA
HEALTH, SAFETY AND FITNESS
Risk is inherent in everything that we do in life. Without accepting and
understanding these risks, we would not be able to do anything at all. The
first concern of all activities undertaken as part of Operation Wallacea
expeditions is to gain an understanding of the environments we will be
working in, and from this to reduce risk to health and safety as far as is
possible. All the expeditions provided by Operation Wallacea meet the
requirements of the British Standard (BS8848) Specification for the provision
of visits, fieldwork, expeditions and adventurous outside the UK. In addition,
Opwall has been audited and awarded a Learning Outside the Classroom
badge for taking students on overseas expeditions. Safety auditing is also
performed at each of the sites during the research programmes.
On the Opwall website (www.opwall.com) for each country you can find
details of the risk assessments and risk amelioration measures for each risk,
how the expedition meets and exceeds each clause of BS8848, the
information needed for the Learning Outside the Classroom Badge for
overseas expeditions, the medical and evacuation report and a summary of
the accidents and illnesses at each site in the previous year. Looking at the
statistics from each site it is apparent that joining an Opwall expedition is
less risky than most sports tours and considerably less risky than activity
type trips such as skiing.
Fitness levels required
The terrestrial projects, particularly Honduras, Ecuador and Transylvania and
to a lesser extent the other projects, require reasonable levels of fitness. The
survey work can be physically demanding, and on top of that the working
conditions may be hot, humid or at high altitude. A useful guide to fitness
levels is given to the right and for some of the more physically demanding
projects the group will need to assess their fitness prior to the expedition
starting against the criteria to the right so we can help advise you on the best
choice of sites:
Grade level
1
Definition of fitness and health risk
Capable of trekking up mountains over rough
ground for 5 hours with a 15kg rucksack and
no health problems that would require medical
assistance in remote camps.
2
Capable of trekking up mountains over rough
ground for 3 hours with a 15kg rucksack and
no health problems that would require medical
assistance in remote camps.
3
Capable of trekking for up to 2 hours on well
defined footpaths with a 15kg rucksack and no
health problems that would likely require
medical assistance.
4
Lower fitness levels than any of the above
definitions or with a medical condition that
could reduce ability in the field or require
emergency evacuation.
Photo credits
Caroline Acton, Ariel Amir, Mel Andrews, Dr Jorge Angulo Valdes, Archipelagos, James Arlington, Tom Avent,
Kaci Bain, Rebecca Beber, Jake Bicknell, Dr Dave Bird, Dr Mark Bowler, Keri Brondo, Hannah Bryan,
Canopy Access Ltd, Carlos Carias, Sara Carlson, Francis Carnegy, Chongqing National Park, Andy Clarke,
Andy Clark, Dwi Coles, Dr Tim Coles, Paul Coles, Emily Cook, S J Cooper, Coral Divers, Felipe Alfonso-Cortes,
Tim Colston, Murray Cooper, Rachel Daniels, Alison Darlington, Juan de Dios Morales Nunez,
Dr Caine DeLacy, Buck Denton, Xiang Dingqian, Dive Dominica, Pippa Disney-Tozer, Carys Edwards,
Dr Dan Exton, Extreme Dominica, Toby Farman, Dr Richard Field, Fiery Sun Photography, Mike Flavell,
Rachael Forster, Nathalia Fuentes, Fundacion ADEPT, Dr Duo Hairuri, G Hamilton, Cat Hendry, Dr Justin Hines,
Tom Hodgson, Ashley Holland, Jon Honkala, Wayne Hsu, Tim Jeffree, Zafar Kizilkaya, Jon Kolby,
Joao Krajewski, Dr Bjorn Lardner, Andrew Laverty, Adam Laverty, Paul Leafe, Sam Leaney, Burton Lim,
Dave Lockie, Dan Locke-Wheaton, Dr Stuart Longhorn, Gerhard Lorist, Jeni Love, Javier Marin,
Eduardo Marabuto, Niall McCann, Peaches Memishian, Dr John Milsom, Paola Moscoso, Dedy Muldiana,
Ferdie Muller, Tom Mullier, Tian Ningchao, Dr Zhiming Niu, Natalie Novak, James O'Neil, Nancy Osler,
Dr Rob Pickles, Dr Rob Pinsonneault, Dr Roger Poland, Abigail Powell, Adam Powell, Dr Nancy Priston,
Dan Pupius, Marc Rabenenadrasan, Adam Radage, Lyndsay Rankin, Bruno Raveloson, Dr Neil Reid,
Ernesto Reyes, Stephen Rousos, Ben Sadd, Dr Pelayo Salinas de Leon, Santa Lucia, Kevin Schafer,
Johan Scholtz, Peter Seymour, Victor Shegelski, Dr Kathy Slater, Prof Dave Smith, Andrew Snyder,
Lucas Sorbara, Hugh Tam, Hannah Thomas, Alex Tozer, Damon Waselenchuk, Hau Wenjiang, Matthew Whiteley
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FEEDBACK QUOTES FROM THE 2013 SEASON
An amazing country and wonderful staff made for a truly remarkable and
memorable experience.
Chris Chong, TASIS, UK; School Teacher, Madagascar Expedition
Everybody should do this! It has been the most amazing week. Saw loads,
learnt loads and laughed loads!!
Ruth Angrave, Samuel Ward Academy, UK; School Teacher, Madagascar Expedition
Superb opportunity for all would be biologists and environmentalists. Real
projects to help with and an excellent experience for all.
Mary Preston, Alcester Grammar School, UK; School Teacher,
Madagascar Expedition
Amazing challenge, a once in a lifetime experience. Committed, professional
and enthusiastic staff.
Katy Crawford, Loreto College, UK; School Teacher, Transylvania Expedition
When you have swam with a whale shark, caught a manatee and tagged a
shark, your reality has permanently changed.
Barry Stevens, Queen Elizabeth Grammar School, Kent, UK; School Teacher,
Cuba Expedition
An inspirational experience which opens your eyes to the true meaning of
biodiversity.
Hélène Bonsall, Sevenoaks School, UK; School Teacher,Transylvania Expedition
Opwall has been important to me, pastorally the experience is invaluable.
Students who perhaps may be problematic in the classroom have blossomed out
on site, to see a student develop their personality to a higher level is invaluable.
Matthew Clint from Kesteven and Sleaford High School, UK; School Teacher,
Mexico Expedition
This is our 5th expedition with Opwall and it just keeps getting better.
Dave Arnold, Brookfield Community School, UK; School Teacher,
Mexico Expedition
A life changing experience - fascinating to get within 5m of some of the
worlds most iconic animals!
Dr Andy Gelling, Exmouth Community College, UK; School Teacher,
South Africa Expedition
A life changing experience - superb teaching, excellent staff and some
awesome wildlife encounters.
Dr Russ Heselden, Norwich High School for Girls, UK; School Teacher,
This is my third time back, and will be back for a fourth! Pupils had great
opportunities and very positive experience.
David Dowsett, Boroughmuir High School, UK; School Teacher,
Honduras Expedition
Opwall staff were excellent and the forest camps were beautiful. The trekking
was hard work but we learned a lot, saw lots of amazing things and enjoyed
being part of the conservation project. The experience of being with a student
group abroad was very positive under Opwall supervision and it was really
good to see the different sampling methods in practice.
Naomi Lister, Bloxham School, UK; School Teacher, Honduras Expedition
The experience here gives students the ability to work in their chosen science
field with experts – the program here is the spark these students will use to
ignite their bright future. Thank you!
Josh Edgell, Queen Anne’s County High, USA; School Teacher,
Honduras Expedition
If you want you students to be fully engaged in the endeavor of scientific
enquiry and research, this program will fulfill that need. They are engaged in
real scientific research that cannot be replicated in any classroom.
Vicki Lee Landersman, DeMatha Catholic High School, USA; School Teacher,
Peru Expedition
This trip gave us all not only the chance to explore and understand an amazing
ecosystem and all its inhabitants, but it gave us time to contemplate our
whole world and reinvigorate us to go out and make a difference. The
memories we made here will last a life time, I can’t wait to come back with
more students. Thank you for a fantastic experience!
Karen Craig-O’Neill, Holliston High School, USA; School Teacher, Peru Expedition
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FEEDBACK
Students got involved with numerous different studies and everything was relevant
to their A-Levels. The students eyes were really opened to new experiences and
the scientists were incredibly giving of their time and knowledge.
Dan Grossman, Fortismere School, UK; School Teacher, Indonesia Expedition
It has inspired some students to rethink their course they want to study at uni
to an ecology based one.
Ruth Hopkins, Howard of Effingham, UK; School Teacher, Indonesia Expedition
In the rest of my life I'll be lucky if I see as many unique animals as I did here!
Sid Umapathy, Bolton Grammar School for Boys, UK; School Student,
The most rewarding week of my life - definitely worth the blood, sweat and tears!
Megan Beardmore-Herd, Samuel Ward Academy, UK; School Student,
The best programme I have ever done – I will never forget this!
Natasha Lanceley, Queen Elizabeth Grammar School, Kent, UK; School Student,
Cuba Expedition
Most memorable 2 weeks of my life.
Matthew McKeown, Lornshill Academy, UK; School Student, Cuba Expedition
An unforgettable, once in a lifetime experience, well worth the money and
time invested. A big thank you to all of the researchers and translators who
made this experience as great as it was.
Thomas Cruikshanks, Greenfaulds High School, UK; School Student,
Transylvania Expedition
A truly fulfilling experience, an eye-opener to what we in the UK once had and
must be conserved in this beautiful countryside.
Harry Smith, Sevenoaks School, UK; School Student, Transylvania Expedition
The Opwall Peru trip provides the hands-on learning, education, and rich
cultural experience that I will cherish forever.
Troy Waddell, Holliston High School, USA; School Student, Peru Expedition
Opwall has perfectly meshed science, learning and fun into a trip that will
never be forgotten.
Kevin Paige, Westerly High School, USA; School Student, Peru Expedition
A trip of a lifetime, don't just consider it, do it! I'll never forget my time here.
Hannah Lee, Netherthorpe School, UK; School Student, Mexico Expedition
An absolutely INCREDIBLE experience! Everything - the animals, lectures,
practical out in the range is truly amazing. Such an unforgettable trip,
definitely recommending.
Ellie Thiess, Clairvaux Mackillop College, Australia; School Student,
It's made me realise this world has no bounderies and I can't wait to go on
even more ridiculously good adventures! Thank you! 100% Top Notch!
Charlotte E Perry, Jersey College for Girls, Channel Islands; School Student,
It was absolutely incredible. It is one thing to learn in class but it was
spectacular to be out in the field seeing these concepts really used. Everyone
was so passionate and happy to talk to me. I loved everything about it.
Tobey Chase, Athol High School, USA; School Student, Honduras Expedition
Absolutely incredible, I’ve learned more this week than I could have for years
in a classroom and everything was wonderful. It’s been the best experience of
my life.
Lillie Wright, Myers Park HS (Part of the North Carolina Crew), USA;
School Student, Honduras Expedition
I’ve learnt so much about biodiversity, speciation, conservation, data
collection, cultural knowledge and most importantly I have learnt what I could
achieve if I actually put my mind to it.
Medha Bhasin, Tanglin Trust school, Singapore; School Student, Indonesia
Expedition
It was great, I learnt a lot from the lectures, and even more from going out in
the field with the experts.
Jarrett Shirouzu, International School of Beijing; China; School Student,
Indonesia Expedition
LINKS TO EXAMS, COURSE WORK AND UNIVERSITY ENTRY
Apart from the obvious value of going on an expedition; contributing to
conservation, the physical challenge and adventurous travel, the experience
can also benefit a student by increasing their chance of gaining entry to
university or applying for a job after school in four main ways:
1. Enhancing understanding of biology, environmental science
or geography syllabuses
2. Completing course work essays or field investigation components
3. Gaining additional research related qualifications
4. Enhancing your university application and interview
The sections below give examples of how syllabuses, course work
requirements and additional research related qualifications can be mapped
against an Opwall expedition. There are many other opportunities in addition
to those described below in different education systems around the World that
have not been covered in these examples. Advice on how particular exam
syllabuses, course work requirements or additional external qualifications can
be linked to different expeditions can be obtained by contacting your nearest
Opwall office.
ENHANCED UNDERSTANDING OF SYLLABUS
Wallace Resource Library
Before even going on a biodiversity expedition, schools working with
Operation Wallacea have access to biodiversity data sets that can be used in
the classroom as exercises to illustrate different parts of the American AP
Biology and Environmental Science courses, UK Biology and Geography Alevels and Scottish Science Higher exams. Many of these courses are putting
an ever increasing emphasis on the analysis of scientific data, guided inquiry
through learning activities and preparing students by extending their
knowledge for synoptic examination questions. The biodiversity data sets
provided by Opwall are known as the Wallace Resource Library (WRL) and are
available free of charge to provide novel data sets for science, geography and
environmental studies courses. Uniquely, these data sets have all been
processed and produced by the actual scientists involved in the research.
The data sets or case studies are divided into five main modules and new
data sets are being added from the Opwall field surveys each year.
Ecosystems – Coral Reefs
Effect of light on coral morphology, variation in anemone fish calls,
comparing data sets on reef fish communities gathered from stereo video
surveys with more traditional survey techniques, temperature tolerance of
lionfish and other data sets.
Ecosystems – Rainforests
Quantifying levels of disturbance in cloud forests, incidence of chytrid fungus
infections in rainforest amphibians, dung beetle community structure in
rainforests, comparing survey data from canopy and ground based surveys
and other data sets.
Ecological Survey Techniques
Mark-release-recapture data on an island boa constrictor population, camera
trapping data on large mammals in the Amazon, distance sampling transects
for large herbivores in Africa, quadrat data to assess the impacts of elephant
browsing pressure and other data sets.
Animal Behaviour
Calculating bull elephant hierarchies, variation in fiddler crab feeding rates
depending on beach height, comparing scan and focal sampling data on
macaques, surgeonfish feeding behavior on reefs and other data sets.
Natural Resource Use and Sustainability
Determining sustainable hunting quotas for large mammals in the Amazon,
whether marine protected areas improve coral reef fisheries, overfishing
impacts from the Amazon and Indonesian reefs and other data sets.
“The datasets are a great way of bringing ecology to life in the
classroom. The examples are so much more interesting than the usual
examples of the size of whelk shells, size of leaves etc.”
Jane Smith, Head of Biology, Priory Academy, Lincoln, UK: teaching A levels
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“WRL is one of the most exciting new developments in science education.”
Karen Singer,Co-ordinator of Science, International School of Nice,
France: teaching IB
“Some students can go through the whole of their senior education
without doing any practical biology and this will bring it to the classroom.”
David Dowsett, Head of Biology, Boroughmuir High School, Edinburgh,
UK: teaching Scottish Highers and Advanced Highers.
Learning in the field
Students joining the expeditions will gain first-hand experience of collecting
data in the field and observing scientists at work. Working in the field gives
these students a much better understanding of many of the aspects of biology,
environmental science or geography syllabuses. Experience has shown that
those studying other subjects though also benefit greatly from the experience
and you do not necessarily have to be a ‘scientist’ to go on an expedition. At
many of the sites, for example, the students have the chance to practice
foreign languages (e.g. Spanish, French).
COURSE WORK ESSAYS OR FIELD INVESTIGATIONS
IB (International Baccalaureate)
In addition to the CAS or Creativity, Action and Service components which can
be incorporated into an Opwall expedition (e.g. dive training counts for the
action section or their conservation contribution for the service elements), the
field exercises can contribute towards the Practical Scheme of Work (PSOW)
and could be assessed for data collection and processing or conclusion and
evaluation internal assessment elements. Also a number of students are
developing their extended essays around their involvement in one of the
research expeditions. There are 20+ research topics at each of the expedition
sites that students can use to develop potential essay title ideas. The Opwall
website also has background information and initial reading lists on each of
the topic areas which enable students to get started on their research. Once
the student has chosen a topic they can then be put in touch with the
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academic leading on that research topic and further advice could then be
given in selecting an appropriate question for that expedition site. The student
can then prepare a literature review of the question before they go into the
field. Once in the field they then have access to scientists and field biologists
who provide additional knowledge and advice. Most of the research
programmes have standardised surveying techniques (needed to compare
between sites or over time) so the student will not have the opportunity to
design and implement their own survey methodology. However, on
expedition, the student will invariably be involved in contributing data using
these standardised methods and they will have the opportunity to have access
to larger data sets which they could then use to help answer their extended
essay research question. Possibly the biggest motivation for students is the
opportunity to experience many aspects of their research question ‘first-hand’
and have the unique chance to speak with the actual scientists involved.
“Perhaps the most important part of the IB course that is relevant to the
Opwall trip is the extended essay which every IB student has to do - this
is like a mini-dissertation and is a topic of the students own choosing
- I have had some students doing their essays on topics from their trips
- 'The over population of elephants in Kruger National Park' and 'The
impact of elephants on the habitat in Kruger'. Another student is doing
something on manatee deaths (from the Cuba trip). The essay must
have a clear Biological research question and the best essays involve
them carrying out some research or collecting some data as part of a
bigger project like one of Opwall’s biodiversity monitoring programmes:
the data needs to be evaluated and interpreted and not simply restated.”
Rebecca Beber, Newcastle College – now at Ampleforth College.
BTEC
A number of examining boards for BTECs in the UK require a written report on
a visit to a suitable ‘scientific site’ and there are opportunities available to
achieve this whilst on expedition.
Australian High School Biology (HSC, VCE, WACE & QCE Biology)
In the Australian system many of the activities experienced on an expedition
could contribute towards the assessment techniques required for the different
state syllabus research investigation components of a subject i.e. Openended investigation, Extended Response Task (ERT) or the Extended
Experimental Investigation (EEI).
recognized by UCAS and some universities actively encourage the adoption
of CoPE. CoPE may be unsuitable if the university you apply to offers grades
as opposed to points. It is an important motivator for going on an expedition
but does require significant support from the school tutor and Opwall. CoPE
is also very useful when applying for a job and is well recognised and
respected by employers.
ADDITIONAL RESEARCH RELATED QUALIFICATIONS
National Honor Society
All schools are strongly encouraged to fundraise for their expeditions and
each school group must have a fundraising Chairperson. In the US system
this role provides an opportunity for the elected student to gain leadership
experience to be used in their National Honor Society application.
In some countries there are additional research related qualifications that can
be obtained partly or wholly by participating in an Opwall expedition and a
few examples are given below. If you would like to do any of these additional
qualifications then your school needs to organise a visit by an Opwall
representative to go through the requirements of the various schemes before
making a final decision.
EPQ – Extended Project Qualification
EPQ is a stand-alone qualification offered in the UK and is a single piece of
work that requires research skills and presentation. The EPQ is supervised
and tutored by your school and the role of Opwall is to help you observe
your research topic when you go on your expedition. Opwall can provide a
relevant list of research questions for each expedition site using the 150
questions described for the IB section above. It is worth between 20 and 70
UCAS points depending on the quality of the final dissertation. The
qualification has a similar commitment to CoPE although the School will
also provide some hours of support teaching. The report is either 5,000
words or 1,000 words plus a presentation (150 hours).
A student from Sevenoaks School in Kent won the Norwegian Young
Scientist of the Year award based on her EPQ project from an Opwall
expedition in southern Madagascar.
University Course Credit
In the US students participating in Operation Wallacea expeditions can earn
university course credit from the University of West Florida. The course credit
is based on exam results, a field diary, a research project essay and an
assessment of student performance in the field. Whilst the UWF course
credits are only guaranteed to be accepted toward Marine Biology or Biology
degrees at UWF, you can submit a summary of the course completed and
your transcript with grade, (which will be provided by the university) when
applying for relevant degrees at other US universities and they may or may
not count it as relevant credit towards your degree.
UNIVERSITY APPLICATIONS AND INTERVIEWS
One of the best uses of the expeditions is to enhance your application for
university entry. In the UK every potential University student has to write a
UCAS Personal Statement as part of the UCAS process and this is quite often
followed up by a University entrance interview. Many students will be able to
relate their experiences gained on the field research programme whilst
working alongside academics and this will be something that makes you
stand out from other similarly qualified students. In the US, the college entry
essay and college interviews are the main opportunities for students to
express themselves beyond their high school transcript, test scores and
extracurricular activities. You may choose to reference your time on
expedition to demonstrate your independence and global efficacy, while the
unique opportunity to meet academics from universities around the world
will also set you apart from other applicants.
BIODIVERSITY SCIENCE
Opwall is the publisher of Biodiversity Science (www.biodiversityscience.org) which is
a quarterly online journal that describes advances in biodiversity monitoring, new
species discoveries and advances on conservation management. Articles are peer
reviewed by a team of editors from Harvard, Oxford, Cambridge,
McMaster and Essex Universities, Scottish Wildlife Trust and the
Royal Geographical Society. If you are not receiving the quarterly
journal then please log onto the Biodiversity Science website and
sign up for the free quarterly issues.
University Award (UA)
For students applying to UK universities this Award, which can be included
on your UCAS application, is the equivalent of the US university course
credit system. Those students completing the research programme qualify
for a Universities Award from ASDAN. The award which costs £25 per
student is well recognized by UCAS and allows a student to demonstrate a
range of personal skills.
Certificate of Personal Effectiveness (CoPE)
The CoPE certificate is awarded by ASDAN and tests 6 skills based on a
number of challenges that students will meet whilst preparing for and going
on, an expedition. It is demanding and requires 150 hours of study and the
production of a portfolio which is moderated by Opwall. It costs £75 (nonrefundable) and is worth 70 UCAS points (an A grade at AS level). Note
students wanting to do CoPE as part of their expedition must apply to Opwall
by 20 December in the year preceding their expedition. A student either
passes or fails and there are no in-between grades. The scheme is
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PARTICIPATING ACADEMICS
Operation Wallacea works with academic specialists in
numerous fields from a range of universities and academic
institutions around the world. There are more than 200
academics in total involved in the research programme. A
sample of the academics are listed below that have been
involved in recent years in the field research programmes,
contributing to publications, supervising PhD students who
form part of the programme or are involved in data analysis
or conservation management outputs from the research.
Conservation Management Scientists
Dr Julian Clifton - University of Western Australia
Dr Angela Benson - University of Brighton
Dr Richard Bodmer - University of Kent
Dr Keri Brondo - Memphis University
Dr Jeri Fox - University of New England
Chris Majors - Wallacea Biodiversity Institute
Dr Ruth Malleson - Social and Economic Consultant
Professor Aubrey Manning - University of Edinburgh
Dr Wanda McCormick - Moulton College
Dr Bob Payne - Lakehead University
Dr Richard Phillips - University of Liverpool
Dr Sarah Pilgrim - University of Essex
Dr Selina Stead - University of Newcastle
Professor Ian Swingland - Operation Wallacea Trust
Dr Chui Ling Tam - Calgary University
Dr Katharine Vincent - University of Witwatersrand
Roger Wardle - Consultant on agri-environmental schemes
Dr Atiek Widayati - Northumbria University
Dr Tony Whitten - Flora and Fauna International
Dr Kathy Velander - Napier University
Genetics, Oceanography and Geology Scientists
Dr Kim Hunter - Salisbury University
Sylvie Bardin - University of Ontario institute of Technology
Dr Stephen Burrows - Clark University
Dr Greg Cowie - University of Edinburgh
Dr Alan Dykes - Kingston University
ACADEMICS
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Barry Ferguson - University of East Anglia
Dr Leanne Hepburn - University of Essex
Dr Tom Horton - SUNY ESF
Dr Ben Horton - UPenn
Dr Richard Hunter - Salisbury University
Dr John Milsom - University College London
Dr Mark Tibbett - University of West Australia
Dr Cathy Walton - University of Manchester
Dr Moyra Wilson - Curtin University, Australia
Dr Gerd Winterleitner - Royal Holloway, University of London
Invertebrate (terrestrial and freshwater) specialists
Dr Martin Speight - University of Oxford
Dr Sarah Beynon - University of Oxford
Dr Patricia Chow-Fraser - McMaster University
Professor James Cook - University of Reading
Dr Sammy de Grave - Oxford Natural History Museum
Dr Francis Gilbert - University of Nottingham
Andy Godfrey - Consultant Entomologist
Dr Merlijn Jocque - University of Leuven
Dr Mary Kelly-Quinn - University College Dublin
Dr Stuart Longhorn - NUI Maynooth
Dr Kenneth McCravy - Western Illinois University
Dr José Nuñez-Mino - TRAFFIC International
Dr Paul O'Callaghan - University College Dublin
Dr Graham Rotheray - National Museum of Scotland
Dr Simon Segar - University of Reading
Dr Roy Wiles - University of Glamorgan
Dr Keith Willmott - Florida Museum of Natural History
~
Ornithologists
Dr Tom Martin - University of Lancaster
Jake Bicknell - DICE, University of Kent
Dr Alan Blackburn - University of Lancaster
Dr Robin Brace - University of Nottingham
Dr Simon Butler - University of Reading
Dr Bruce Byers - Umass Amherst
Dr Hannah Clarke - University of Dundee
Dr Nico Dauphine - University of Georgia, Athens
Dr Nicola Goodship - Wetlands and Wildfowl Trust
Dr Martin Jones - Manchester Metropolitan University
Dr Dave Kelly - Trinity College Dublin
Paul Leafe - Montgomeryshire County Recorder
Dr Nicola Marples - Trinity College Dublin
Martin Meads - Sparsholt College
Mark Miller - BirdLife International
Dr Joel Prashant Jack - Environmental Protection
Institute, India
Fabiola Rodriguez - Universidad Nacional Autonoma
de Honduras
Dr Wael M Shohdi - Al-Azhar University, Egypt
Matthew White - BirdLife International
Dr Nurul Winarni - World Conservation Society
Prof. Rueven Yosef - Arava Institute for Environmental Studies
Herpetologists
Dr Steve Green - Operation Wallacea
Dr Graeme Gillespie - University of Melbourne
Dr Scott Boback - Dickinson College
Dr Jeff Burkhart - University of La Verne
Jon Kolby - James Cook University
Dr Scotty Kyle - KZN Ezemvelo
Dr Bjorn Lardner - USGS
Dr Randall Morrison - McDaniel University
Dr Eridani Mulder - Central Queensland University
Dr Silviu Petrovan - University of Hull
Dr Bob Reed - USGS
Mariano Suarez - Centro de Ecologico de Akumal (CEA)
Botany, Plant Sciences and Forestry Specialists
Dr Bruce Carlisle - Northumbria University
Dr Gareth Bruce - Glamorgan University
Dr Jon Cocking - JCA Ltd
Dr Anke Dietzsche - Trinity College Dublin
Dr Daniel Kelly - Trinity College Dublin
Dr Grace O'Donovan - Independent ecology consultant
Dr Pascale Poussart - Princeton University
Dr Andrew Powling - University of Portsmouth
Dr Andrew Smith - University of Oxford
Dr Peter Thomas - University of Keele
Dr Clay Trauernicht - University of Hawaii
Caroline Whitefoord - Natural History Museum
Dr Samy Zalat - Nature and Science Foundation for Egypt
Marine Scientists
Professor Dave Smith - University of Essex
Dr Gabby Ahmadia - World Wildlife Fund (WWF)
Professor Jorge Angulo Valdes - University of Havana
Dr Arthur Anker - Museum Nationa d'Histoire Naturelle, Paris
Dr Richard Barnes - University of Cambridge
Professor James Bell - Victoria University of Wellington
Dr Wayne Bennett - University of West Florida
Dr Paul Bologna - Montclair State University
Dr Isabelle Cote - Simon Fraser University
Professor James Crabbe - University of Bedfordshire
Dr Simon Cragg - Portsmouth University
Dr Leanne Cullen - Cardiff University
Dr Sarah Curran - Department for Planning
and Infrastructure, Fremantle
Dr Jocelyn Curtis-Quick - Cape Eleuthera Marine
Institute, Bahamas
Dr John Eme - University of North Texas
Dr Caine Delacy - University of Western Australia
Dr Teresa Fernandes - Heriot Watt University
Dr Andy Gill - Cranfield Institute
Dr Ben Green - Environment Agency
Dr Emma Hayhurst - University of Glamorgan
Dr Ian Hendy - University of Portsmouth
Dr Sebastian Hennige - Heriot Watt University
Dr Jess Jaxion Harm - University of Vienna
Dr Magnus Johnson - University of Hull
Dr Tim Johnson - University of Glamorgan
Dr James McDonald - Rutgers University
Dr Steve McMellor - University of Essex
Dr Ed Morgan - University of Glamorgan
Dr Clare Peddie - University of St Andrews
Dr Alan Pinder - Dalhousie University
Dr Johanna Polsenberg - US House of Representatives
Dr Dai Roberts - Queens University Belfast
Professor Alex Rogers - University of Oxford
Dr Pelayo Salinas de Leon - Victoria University Wellington
Dr James Saunders - Operation Wallacea
Dr Patric Scaps - University of Perpignon
Dr Jon Shrives - Jersey State Fisheries Department
Dr Tim Smith - WEI, South Africa
Dr Edd Stockdale - University of Western Australia
Dr Dave Suggett - University of Essex
Professor Chris Todd - University of St Andrews
Dr Richard Unsworth - Swansea University
Dr Nerida Wilson - Australia Museum
Dr Kyle oung - Universidad de los Lagos, Chile
Mammal Specialists
Dr Kathy Slater - Operation Wallacea
Dr Kirsten Bohn - Florida International University
Dr Mark Bowler - University of St Andrews
Professor Mike Bruford - University of Cardiff
Jill Carpenter - Independent bat consultant
Dr Ruth Cox - Liverpool John Moores University
Dr Christian Dietz - University of Tuebingen
Dr Nigel Dunstone - Natural History New Zealand
Dr Sharon Gursky-Doyen - SUNY Stony Brook
Dr Abdul Haris Mustari - IPB, Bogor
Dr Justin Hines - Operation Wallacea
Andrew Jennings - IUCN/SSC Small Carnivore Specialist Group
Jim Jones - Surrey Wildlife Trust
Dr Tigga Kingston - Texas Tech University
Juliet Leadbeater - University of Chester
Dr Burton Lim - Royal Ontario Museum
Professor Aubrey Manning - University of Edinburgh
Niall McCann - University of Cardiff
Professor Mike Perrin - University of KwaZulu Natal
Dr Rob Pickle - Institute of Zoology London
Dr Abigail Phillips - University of Birmingham
Dr Nancy Priston - Oxford Brookes University
Professor Ute Radespiel - Hannover Unversity
Dr Neil Reid - Queens University Belfast
Dario Rivera - University of Queensland
Dr Steve Rossiter - Queen Mary University of London
Dr Adrian Seymour - Independent wildlife film maker
Dr Myron Shekelle - National University of Singapore
Dr Andrew Smith - Anglia Ruskin University
Dr Kym Snarr - University of Toronto
Dr Peter Taylor - University of KwaZulu Natal
Professor Stewart Thompson - Oxford Brookes University
Dr David Tosh - Queens University Belfast
Jeremy Truscott - Sheffield Biodiversity Steering Group
Dr Phil Wheeler - University of Hull
Dr C.B Wood - Providence College
Dr Anne Zeller - University of Waterloo
Fisheries Scientists
Dr Dan Exton - Operation Wallacea
Dr Dave Bird - University of Western England
Dr Emmanuel Frimpong - Virginia Polytechnic
Professor Tim Gray - University of Newcastle
Dr Peter Henderson - University of Oxford
Piotr Kalinowski - Fisheries consultant
Dr Duncan May - Fisheries consultant
Joel Rice - Fisheries consultant
Dr Rodney Rountree - University of Connecticut
Professor Michael Stewart - Troy University
Dr Jason Vokoun - University of Connecticut
Paul Simonin - Cornell University
GIS and Statistical Analysis
Dr Peter Long - University of Oxford
Dr Craig Beech - Peace Parks Foundation
Jesse Blits - University of Amsterdam
Dr Natalie Cooper - Havard University
Dr Bella Davies - Oxford Brookes University
Dr Richard Field - University of Nottingham
Dr Fiona Hemsley Flint - University of Edinburgh
Dr Alan Jones - University of Sheffield
Dr Marco Lusquinos - Imperial College London
Cristi Malos - Babes-Bolyai University, Cluj
Dr Lisa Manne - CUNY
Dr Peter Randerson - University of Cardiff
Dr Allister Smith - Oxford Brookes University
Dr Emily Woollen - University of Edinburgh
Professor Kathy Willis - University of Oxford
09
INDONESIA
Structure of the Expedition
Sulawesi and the surrounding smaller islands were identified as a unique biogeographic region by the naturalist Alfred Russel Wallace. These islands are
now known as the Wallacea region of Indonesia and formed their unique fauna
due to their isolation from other landmasses by the deep ocean channels that
surround the islands. Sulawesi has a high percentage of endemic species with
127 known mammals, of which 62% (79 species) are endemic; 700 species
of bird (36% endemic); and 74 species of herpetofauna (38% endemic).
Despite such high numbers of endemic species in these forests the Wallacea
region remains one of the least biologically studied areas in the world, and
one of the most likely places to discover vertebrate species that are new to
science. The reefs in this part of the world are the most biologically rich of
any reefs and form part of the Coral Triangle – reefs with the highest richness
of hard coral genera.
The first week of the expedition is spent either in the Lambusango forests in the
south or the North Buton forests at Ereke and the teams will be helping to collect
data on the carbon, biodiversity and community benefits of the forest which are
then being used as part of a submission under the Reduction in Emissions from
Deforestation and forest Degradation (REDD+ scheme) for funding the
protection of the Buton forests. The second week will be spent at either the Hoga
Marine Research Centre or at the Bau Bau Marine Research Centre. The Opwall
marine research teams in Indonesia have an outstanding research publication
record and a large number of marine scientists are based on Hoga Island.
Forest week
The school groups will be staying in one of the forest field camps and
will complete:
Jungle skills training. Coping with dangerous animals and plants, health
issues, living in fly camps, trekking and navigation, how to find food and
water. In addition the students can opt to replace one of these half day
options with a short course on learning how to ascend into the canopy.
Canopy access training costs $155 extra for this optional additional course.
10
COUNTRIES - INDONESIA
Forest measurements. After one session of training the students will then
be working in teams each completing measurements of 50m x 50m
quadrats to collect data on the diameter at breast height of all woody
species, canopy height, quantity of vegetation at different heights from a
touch pole, light penetration to forest floor using a canopy scope, evidence
of disturbance (e.g. cut stumps) and sapling density.
Learning about biodiversity monitoring techniques and helping with
surveys. This consists of a lecture course on Wallacea Forest Ecology
including: Biodiversity and endemism in Wallacea forests (Alfred Russel
Wallace, why the Wallacea region has unique species), birds (Wallacea
endemic species, survey techniques), amphibians and reptiles (snakes and
lizards endemic to Wallacea region), Sulawesi mammals (sympatric
speciation of bats, macaque social structure, estimating anoa populations)
and conservation synthesis (REDD schemes, ethical product pricing
schemes). The practical sessions will include:
Bird point counts and mist net sampling for birds. The students
will be able to join an early morning bird point count and learn how the
technique works. Students will also see how mist nets are used, captured
birds removed from the nets, handled, identified and morphometric
measurements recorded.
Joining pitline/trapping surveys. The students will be helping with the
checking of pitline catches for amphibians, reptiles and small mammals
and also emptying small mammal traps.
Scan search sampling for herpetofauna. The students will practice
transect sampling on trails and watercourses searching for reptiles and
amphibians on either side of the transect line.
Night time frog and reptile transects. This practical will involve spotlight
surveys of river after dark with a herpetologist to assess frog
communities and opportunistically sighted reptiles.
Invertebrate surveys. This practical will involve working with the
invertebrate scientist on completing pollard walks for butterflies,
emptying pitfall traps for dung beetles and checking light traps for moths.
Megafauna survey. This survey will involve trekking quietly along a 3 km
transect and recording the presence of macaque troops, signs of large
mammals such as anoa or wild pig and bird indicators such as the two
hornbill species. The practical will teach how distance sampling and
patch occupancy analysis can be used to estimate populations.
Bat netting. This practical will involve working with the bat scientist in
the evening to set and empty mist nets.
Marine week
During their marine week the school will be completing one of the
following options:
A full PADI Open Water dive training course.
Completion of an Indo-Pacific reef ecology course consisting of lectures
and in water practicals either by diving (if a qualified diver) or snorkelling.
The lectures cover an introduction to coral reef ecosystem (reef formation,
why Indo Pacific reefs are so diverse), coral and algal species (growth
forms and common species), mangrove and seagrass ecology (habitat
connectivity), economically important invertebrates (lobster fishery, sea
cucumber fishery), identification of coral reef fish (main reef fish families),
reef survey techniques (quadrats, transects, stereo video), threats to reefs
(climate change, fisheries, invasive species) and marine conservation
(marine protected areas in Indonesia, fisheries registration scheme).
Completion of a PADI Open Water referral course (students need to arrive
having completed their theory and pool training) and then on site they
complete dive elements of the full PADI Open Water which takes the first
3 days and they then join the Indo Pacific reef ecology course.
Alternatively they can take the PADI Scuba Diver qualification which takes
3 days and then move onto the reef ecology course.
Facilities
The forest week is spent in one of the forest camps that have been installed
at various points in the Lambusango to North Buton forests to incorporate
different forest types and disturbance levels. The camps are set up with
hammocks, tents and communal eating areas. Field toilets are built at each
of the camps and shower systems are built into waterfalls on the rivers next
to each of the camps. The experience of living and working at these remote
forest camps is one that few people forget. The marine week is spent at
either the Hoga Island Marine Research Station or the Bau Bau Marine
Research Centre. On Hoga the students will be living on an idyllic tropical
island surrounded by white sandy beaches and pristine coral reefs.
Traditionally-built wooden houses serve as accommodation on the island and
are complete with their own bathroom and private balcony. There are a large
number of researchers based at this site. However, travelling to this site
requires additional boat journeys so an alternative is to spend the second
week at the Bau Bau research centre on Buton Island which would mean an
extra day’s worth of diving and less travel. Accommodation at the Bau Bau
marine centre is in shared rooms with hot showers and flush toilets.
Example research questions for IB extended essays or EPQ scheme
(see www.opwall.com for full list of topics)
How can butterfly communities in forests be properly surveyed?
What is the difference in herpetofauna species captured from passive
techniques versus active surveys?
What differences are there between using mist nets and harp traps for
sampling bats?
How can the human wildlife conflict with macaques be mitigated?
How can you estimate populations of large but difficult to see forest mammals?
How are fiddler and sentinel crab species spatially separated on the intertidal areas?
Anemonefish and anemone host interactions.
Adapatations of species living in tidal rockpools.
Estimating reef fish communities from stereo video as opposed to UVC surveys.
11
HONDURAS
The Honduras expedition is run in the endemic rich cloud forests of the
Cusuco National Park or the lowland forests of the Jeanette Kawas National
Park near Tela. The students spend their first week in a forest camp and will be
on site with an international team of academics who are collecting data on the
carbon, biodiversity and community benefits of the forest. These data are then
being used as part of annual reports to help with funding the protection of the
Cusuco Park under the Reduction in Emissions from Deforestation and forest
Degradation (REDD+ scheme) or, if based in Tela, on packaging the forests
for funding under this scheme.
The second week will be operate from one of the two marine research sites
run by Operation Wallacea – Utila or Tela. The main research objective at
these sites is to complete annual monitoring of the coral and reef fish
communities so the effectiveness of the management strategies at the two
sites can be assessed. At both sites, important research on the associated
mangrove systems is also being carried out in order to take a holistic
approach to tropical coastal ecosystem conservation.
Cloud or lowland forest week
During their cloud forest week each school will choose or be allocated one of
the following options:
Base Camp for 3 days and Cantiles field camp for 3 days
Buenos Aires mountain village for 3 days and Guanales field camp for 3 days
Jeanette Kawas Reserve will be 3 days in the Punta Sal camp and 3 days
in a field camp in the reserve
For the first two of these options the itinerary is the same and the students
will complete:
Jungle skills training. Coping with dangerous animals and plants, health
issues, living in fly camps, trekking and navigation. In addition, the students
can take a short course on learning how to ascend into the canopy. This
course is run by Canopy Access and costs $155 extra but is optional.
12
COUNTRIES - HONDURAS
Forest measurements. After one session of training the students will then
be working in teams each completing measurements of 20m x 20m
quadrats to collect data on the diameter at breast height of all woody
species, canopy height, quantity of vegetation at different heights from a
touch pole, light penetration to forest floor using a canopy scope, evidence
of disturbance (e.g. cut stumps) and sapling density.
surveys. This consists of a lecture course on Neotropical Ecology
including: rainforest structure and biodiversity (distribution of cloud
forests, biodiversity gradients and hotspots), adaptations and co-evolution
(cryptic coloured species, warning colouration, Batesian mimicry),
amphibians and reptiles (endemic amphibians in Cusuco, chytrid fungus,
dangerous snakes), cloud forest birds (large game birds, hole nesting
species, humming birds), cloud forest mammals (Great American faunal
exchange, howler monkey social structure, cat predators) and conservation
synthesis (threats to Cusuco Park, REDD scheme, ethical priced products).
The practical sessions will include:
Bird point counts and mist net sampling for birds. The students
will be able to join an early morning bird point count and learn how the
technique works. Students will also see how mist nets are used, captured
birds removed from the nets, handled, identified and morphometric
measurements recorded.
Scan search sampling for herpetofauna. The students will practice
transect sampling by walking along a transect line in the forest and
searching for reptiles and amphibians on either side of the transect line.
Many of the transect lines connect with a stream. While at the stream
they will use systematic scan searching of amphibians. All animals
caught along the transect line or in the stream will be identified. Skin
swabs of amphibians will also be collected as part of the ongoing
monitoring of the chytrid fungus.
Small mammal trapping. This session involves checking previously
baited traps for small mammals, identifying any individuals caught and
marking them before release (mark-release-recapture).
Light trapping and pitline surveys for invertebrates. A light trap
will be set to monitor nocturnal invertebrates such as moths and jewel
scarab beetles. Pitfall traps baited with dung need checking and
emptying daily.
Bat mist netting. This practical will involve working with the bat
scientist in the evening to set and empty mist nets.
For the Jeanette Kawas Reserve option the students will complete jungle
skills training, forest measurements, bird counts and herpetofauna surveys
with the additional activities of:
Jungle skills training. The students can visit the second largest botanical
garden in the world at Lancetilla and take a short course on learning how
to ascend into the canopy. This course is run by Canopy Access and
costs $155 extra but is an optional course.
surveys. This consists of a lecture course on Neotropical Forest Ecology
similar to the programme in Cusuco with the additional activies such as:
Camera trapping and transect surveys for large mammals. A camera
trap network has been established in Punta Sal, specifically to monitor
Jaguar populations in the area. Students will set up a small number of
their own camera traps at the start of the week in strategic locations
and then collect them in at the end of the week to analyse the photos.
In addition, students will walk transects to look for signs of mammal
populations. Students will also learn to analyse photo images from the
pre-existing camera trap network.
Light trapping for invertebrates and diurnal butterfly and dragonfly
netting. A light trap will be set to monitor nocturnal invertebrates such
as moths and longhorn beetles. Diurnal searches will be conducted for
butterflies and dragonflies which will be captured using sweep nets for
species identification.
Howler Monkey behavioural studies. Students will learn to collect
behavioural data on Howler Monkey populations in the Punta Sal area.
Marine week
During their marine week the school can opt to be based at either the Coral
View Research Centre on Utila or the Tela Marine Research Centre in Tela Bay
depending on availability. At both sites the students will be completing one
of the following options:
Completion of a Caribbean coral reef ecology course (Utila) or coastal
ecology course (Tela) consisting of lectures and in water practicals either
by diving (if a qualified diver) or snorkelling. The lectures cover an
introduction to coral reef ecosystems (reef formation, Meso-American
barrier reef), coral and algal species (growth forms and common species),
mangrove and seagrass ecology, ecologically important invertebrates
(particularly sea urchins), identification of coral reef fish (main reef fish
families), reef survey techniques (quadrats, transects, stereo video),
threats to reefs (climate change, fisheries, invasive species) and marine
conservation (Meso-American barrier reef conservation strategies).
Facilities
If you choose the Base Camp/Cantiles option then accommodation at Base
Camp will be in tents and there are toilets and showers in the camp. This is
where all the data from the various survey teams are collated and there is a
DNA lab on site. From Base Camp it is a 4 hour trek to Cantiles field camp
where accommodation is in hammocks or tents (depending on availability)
and with the river as the shower facility. For those choosing the Buenos
Aires/Guanales option, they will be based for part of the week in the buffer
zone village of Buenos Aires. Accommodation is in local houses in this
Honduran mountain community whilst at the Guanales camp in the core zone
of the Park the group will be staying in hammocks or tents depending on
availability. From Buenos Aires it is approximately a 5 hour trek to Guanales.
In the Tela forests accommodation will be in tents in a shaded area on a
secluded beach on the Punta Sal peninsula for the first 3 days and a field
camp based in hammocks for a further 3 days.
For the marine week there is the choice of crossing to Utila Island and
staying at the Coral View Research Centre. Accommodation is in shared
rooms with fans and the hotel is situated between some of the best reefs and
the largest mangrove-lined lagoon system on the island. The alternative
marine location is on the mainland at the Honduras Shores Plantation
located on a beach in the Bay of Tela. Accommodation is in dormitory style
rooms set back from the beach. There is a small dive centre, swimming pool
and lecture facilities in the adjacent hotel. Groups visiting the Punta Sal
forest site would spend their marine week at Tela, whereas groups spending
their forest week in Cusuco National Park may visit either the Tela marine site
or Utila.
How can you quantify levels of forest disturbance?
How is the REDD+ scheme helping to conserve forests in Central America?
How does altitude, rainfall and temperature affect leaf structure?
Are dung beetles good indicators of forest disturbance?
What is the impact of Chytrid fungus on amphibian populations?
How does DNA bar coding of species work?
How does altitude affect bird distributions?
How do bats vary their wing structure depending on habitat type?
How are reef fish species communities affected by depth?
Why is the Lionfish invasion of the Caribbean such a problem?
What ecosystem services do mangroves perform?
having completed their theory and pool training) which takes the first
3 days and they then join the Caribbean coral reef ecology course (Utila)
or coastal ecology course (Tela).
13
MADAGASCAR
Madagascar has some of the most spectacular biodiversity in the world
(lemurs, tenrecs, baobabs and over half of all known chameleon species),
much of which is endemic. The Opwall teams are working in the Mahamavo
forests with Oxford University collecting data on carbon, biodiversity and
community economics of the dry forests to submit the forests for funding
using the REDD+ scheme. For the second week the groups have the option
of travelling to the island of Nosy Be to complete a dive training course or
learn about Indian Ocean reef ecology. Alternatively there is the option of
travelling overland around Northern Madagascar and visiting a series of
habitats and protected areas to see a wide range of lemur, chameleon and
Malagasy bird species.
Week 1 – Mahamavo forest week
During the first week the teams will complete surveys including:
Herpetofauna routes A small group of students led by a herpetologist walk
slowly along forest sample routes scanning the vegetation and ground
carefully for reptiles and amphibians since many species, particularly
chameleons, are quite cryptic. Spotlight surveys are also done in
the evening.
Lemur routes Groups walk slowly along the route with a lemur specialist
scanning the canopy closely for groups of lemurs. When a troop is
detected we record the location, the species, the troop size and the
distance from the route centreline. These transects are completed both
during the day and at night using spotlights.
Bird point counts and mist netting Students join an ornithologist
completing point counts in the early morning. Teams form an outward
facing circle and record all the birds seen or heard over a 10 minute
period. Mist nets are also used for cryptic species and when birds are
caught, the ornithologist will demonstrate how they are removed from the
net, handled and morphometric measurements recorded.
14
COUNTRIES - MADAGASCAR
Wetland birds by boat This boat based survey follows a route through
mangroves and out into an estuary with mud flats recording all the wetland
bird species.
Small mammal trapping Small mammal traps are baited and set in the
evenings and students will then check traps and help process any captures
in a morning session.
Bat mist netting Mist nets are used to sample the bat communities and
all bats captured will be identified.
Forest structure plots The aim of making measurements in a stratified
sample of 20m x 20m plots in the forests is to estimate the amount of
carbon stored in woody vegetation. In addition this activity monitors
trends in some indicators of forest physical parameters (canopy cover,
sapling density).
The groups will also complete a Madagascar Wildlife and Culture course with
lectures on Introduction to Madagascar (diversity of Madagascar wildlife,
people and cultures), biogeography and evolution of Madagascar wildlife
(why so many species are endemic, distribution of major habitats), species
concept (endemic amphibian, reptile bird and mammal species in
Madagascar, what is a species?), biodiversity conservation in Madagascar
(National Park system, human impacts on wildlife), people in Madagascar
(major cultures and languages) and conservation synthesis (how the data
from Mahamavo are being used).
Week 2 - Marine week option
On this option the school will be based at the Nosy Be Marine Camp and will
be completing one of the following options:
Completion of a Indian Ocean reef ecology course consisting of lectures
The lectures cover an introduction to coral reef ecosystem (reef formation
east Africa reef distribution), coral and algal species (growth forms and
common species), marine megafauna (whale shark migrations, whales of
southern Africa) mangrove and seagrass ecology, ecologically
important invertebrates (lobster fishery,mollusc fishery), identification of
coral reef fish (herbivores, piscivores, omnivores and specialists such as
cleaner fish), reef survey techniques (quadrats, transects, stereo video),
threats to reefs (climate change, fisheries, invasive species) and marine
conservation (Madagascar marine protected areas).
having completed their theory and pool training) which takes the first 3
days and they then join the Indian Ocean reef ecology course.
Week 2 - Lemur and chameleon hunt option
Instead of going to the Nosy Be marine site a second option is for the group
to travel overland on a lemur and chameleon hunt in week 2. Whilst in the
Mahamvo forests you should have seen Coquerel’s Sifaka, Brown Lemur and
various nocturnal species of lemurs but travelling around additional reserves
will give you the chance to see additional species plus new species of
chameleons and birds. Each day combines some time on the road travelling
in a bus or 4x4 vehicle. The itinerary will include the Ankarafantsika Reserve
where you should be looking for the Mongoose Lemur and Fat-tailed Dwarf
Lemur as well as endemic birds such as the Rufous and Van Dam’s Vangas.
The journey will take you to the northern tip of Madagascar to the Ankarana
Reserve where you should be looking for the Crowned Head and Sanford’s
Brown Lemurs as well as the Madagascar Crested Ibis. The next stop would
be the Protected Area of Andrafiamena-Andavakoera which is 30,000ha of
medium altitude rainforest and the last refuge of the Black Lemur. The final
stop will be at Amber Mountain National Park which comprises a massif
which rises from the surrounding dry region forming an isolated stretch of
montane rainforest covering. The group will finish at Diego Suarez airport and
fly back to Antananarivo to catch their international flights home.
Accommodation will be in simple hotels, guesthouses or camping en-route.
This trip will give you the chance to see a lot more of Madagascar’s wildlife.
This option has an additional surcharge over and above the price paid for the
2 week Opwall expedition including internal transfers for details please
contact your local Opwall Office.
Facilities
In the Mahamavo forests the students will be based in a camp near to
Mariarano village. Accommodation is in tents next to a building converted for
use as a field laboratory with a library, computers running the biodiversity
database, GIS and statistics software. There are jungle showers and toilets in
the camp. In addition to the camp at Mariarano, a tented forest camp will
also be used adjacent to Matsedroy Lake. At Nosy Be Island for the marine
week accommodation is in tents next to the beach in a walled camp at
Maradoka village. On the overland lemur and chameleon hunt option to
maximise the habitats seen, accommodation will be in tents.
Example research questions for IB, EPQ or CoPE
How do bird communities of Madagascar compare with those found
on the African mainland?
What is different about the Madagascar herpetofauna compared
to the rest of Africa?
How does the 2003 Dreamworks movie depiction of Madagascar
wildlife differ from the real fauna?
What are the main characteristics that make chameleons successful?
How can satellite images help conservation efforts in Madagascar?
What are the main threats to Madagascar wildlife?
Can conservation in Madagascar succeed?
Why are lemurs thriving in Madagascar?
Why are the tenrecs of Madagascar so unusual?
15
MEXICO
The Mexican research project is run in the vast Mayan Jungle (Selva Maya)
that covers the southern section of the Yucatan Peninsula of Mexico and
extends into the neighbouring state of Chiapas to the east and the Petén region
of Guatemala to the south. This dense jungle is the largest expanse of tropical
forest outside of the Amazon. In addition to a large collection of Ancient
Mayan ruins, the Selva Maya is one of the largest remaining strongholds of
endangered mammals such as jaguar and tapir. The Operation Wallacea
research project is based in the Calakmul Biosphere Reserve which is an
UNESCO World Heritage Site located in the Yucatan Peninsula section of the
Selva Maya. The data collected by students will be used to apply for longterm funding to protect the Calakmul forests and wildlife from deforestation
and hunting under the Reduction in Emissions from Deforestation and forest
Degradation (REDD+ scheme). The specific research objectives are:
To record data on tree diversity and tree volume in order to calculate
reliable estimates of the carbon biomass contained in Calakmul,
which will determine the extent of funding that can be obtained from REDD.
To assist in the biodiversity surveys of mammals, reptiles, amphibians and
birds completed by specialists, which will also determine the extent of
funding that can be obtained from REDD.
To ascertain population density of large mammals to enable creation of
sustainable hunting quotas for buffer zone communities.
The second week of the expedition will be run from the marine research site
operated by Operation Wallacea in Akumal or in Xpu Ha. Akumal and Xpu Ha
are popular tourist spots due to the beautiful beaches, coral reefs and
permanent presence of turtles, although Akumal is the more developed of the
two. However, if not carefully managed, tourism will start to impact on the
coral reef ecosystem causing irrevocable damage. The main research
objective at Akumal and Xpu Ha is to complete annual monitoring of the coral
and reef fish communities, in areas with different tourism levels and to
measure water quality as a means of determining how water contamination
16
COUNTRIES - MEXICO
and sedimentation affect the coral reef system. During this week the students
will mainly be completing dive training or the Caribbean reef ecology course
(if already dive certified or wishing only to snorkel), but they will also
contribute to some ongoing data collection. During in-water practicals (diving
or snorkelling) students will assist with abundance surveys of lion fish (an
invasive species) and sea urchins (important grazers that maintain coral
health). Students will also be helping with surveys to determine the annual
abundance and distribution of turtle nesting sites, abundance and health of
juvenile turtles in the sea grasses and tourist surveys used to determine the
carrying capacity of the bay.
Forest week
The teams will spend their time in the jungle field camps distributed across
the Calakmul reserve, with a day visit to the Mayan archaeological site. During
their week in the jungle the students will complete activities as follows:
Introduction to the Ancient Maya. This day-long course on the Ancient
Maya includes a museum tour, a visit to the breathtaking Calakmul ruins
and information relating to the effect of Ancient Mayan agro-forestry on
tree and wildlife diversity in the reserve.
Jungle skills training.
Mayan forest ecology and conservation lectures. This lecture course
on Mayan Forest Ecology consists of 6 lectures covering the following
topics: Biodiversity, evolution and classification, Endemism, biodiversity
hotspots and forest structure in Calakmul Biosphere Reserve, Herpetofauna
and adaptation (reptile and amphibian diversity in Calakmul, snake teeth
and venom, Batesian mimicry, herpetofauna survey methods), Neotropical
birds (bird identification and ecology, birds as indicators of forest health,
bird survey methods), Neotropical mammals (effect of forest disturbance
on bat diversity, forest ungulates and seed predation, spider monkey social
structure, jaguar ranging patterns in Calakmul, mammal survey methods)
and Conservation synthesis (the use of Opwall datasets to monitor changes
to forest cover and biodiversity over time, GIS and modelling species
distribution patterns, sustainable hunting of peccary and deer, REDD scheme).
Carbon biomass and habitat surveys. Students will work
alongside the habitat survey team to mark and then survey 20m x 20m
forest quadrats. Surveys will involve numbering all trees for subsequent
species identification, measuring the diameter at breast height (DBH) and
height or each tree, measuring all dead wood (because even dead wood
contains carbon), and counting the number of the saplings in the quadrat.
Biodiversity surveys. Students will work alongside a range of specialist
teams to complete surveys on:
Mist net surveys for birds (includes learning how to identify birds in
the hand and take morphometric measurements).
Scan search sampling for herpetofauna from forest transects.
having completed their theory and pool training) which takes the first 3
days and they then join the Caribbean reef ecology course.
Students can also participate in the following additional activities:
Lion fish and sea urchin monitoring.
Turtle nesting site monitoring.
Tourist surveys in the bays and lagoon.
Facilities
In the forest camps the students will be staying in hammocks or tents at with
field type bathroom facilities. The second week is a bit more comfortable
with students based in shared dormitories of 8 - 12 people.
Pitfall trap surveys for herpetofauna next to aguadas (temporary lakes).
Large mammal transect surveys based on visual encounters (e.g.
primates and deer) and tracks (e.g. jaguar and tapir).
Mist netting for bats (includes learning how to identify birds in
the hand and take morphometric measurements).
Dawn point counts for birds.
Marine week
During their marine week the students will be completing one of the
following options:
Completion of a Caribbean reef ecology course consisting of lectures and
in water practicals either by diving (if a qualified diver) or snorkelling.
The lectures cover an introduction to coral reef ecosystem (characteristics
of a reef, reef formation), coral and algal species (growth forms and
common species), mangrove and seagrass ecology (importance of
connective systems, threats to mangroves), economically important
invertebrates (lobster fishery, aquarium trade), identification of coral reef
fish (main reef fish families), reef survey techniques (quadrats, transects,
stereo video), threats to and conservation of reefs (Akumal case study,
other marine protected areas in Caribbean).
How can carbon stock of forests be calculated and linked to REDD payments?
Describe the social structure of spider monkeys.
Describe how camera trapping is used to estimate jaguar, puma
and tapir population levels.
How are large mammal stocks estimated in the Mayan forests and used
to set hunting quotas?
Describe the structure of the ancient Mayan city of Calakmul.
What are the main nest habitat requirements for Loggerhead,
Green and Hawksbill turtles?
Can the growth of tourism at Akumal be achieved whilst still protecting
the turtle populations?
17
DOMINICA
This expedition is run on one of the most unspoiled islands in the Caribbean.
Steep forested cliffs rise straight out of the sea and sheer forested slopes
leading into deep canyons with huge waterfalls have made use of mechanical
forest clearance methods impossible on Dominica and thereby protected the
forests. 20% of the island is now protected as national parks or forest reserves
and the island has the largest stands of primary forest of all the Caribbean
islands. The students spend their first week in the Clemson University
rainforest research centre and will be on site with an international team of
academics who are collecting data on biodiversity of key taxa (woody plants,
various invertebrate groups, freshwater fish) and examining the impact of
invasive species (e.g. a Puerto Rican anole species that has invaded the island
and spread rapidly) and population levels of a giant frog species (known
locally as crapaud). An optional extra course during this week is for the
students to learn ‘canyoning’ and abseil down into some of the deep gorges
on the island.
The second week will be staying in student accommodation in a renovated
British fort in the north of the island. The students will be completing a PADI
Open Water dive training course or a Caribbean reef ecology course which
consists of two lectures and two in-water activities each day. In addition they
learn about the whale research taking place just off the coast and they may get
the chance to see sperm whales and other sea mammals.
Forest week
The first day will be spent on lectures and orientation in the research centre.
The first part of the Caribbean Island ecology course will be run on this first
day and will cover topics such as the importance of the Caribbean biodiversity
hotspot, the formation of the Lesser Antilles and biodiversity of Dominica and
survey techniques being used on the various projects during the week. The
group will then divide into five teams which will each spend one day on each
of the following activities:
18
COUNTRIES - DOMINICA
Part 2 of the Caribbean Island Ecology course. This will include lectures
on invasive island species and the threats to Caribbean biodiversity, the
endemic birds of the Caribbean and how the two endemic parrots on
Dominica have been surveyed and conservation strategies being used on
the island. In addition the students will have the opportunity to complete a
half day canyoning course and learn how to abseil down into the deep
gorges that cover much of the island. This course is an optional extra run
by Extreme Dominica and costs $120.
Forest structure survey team. This team will be collecting data on size
class structure of the trees, amount of light penetrating to the forest floor,
regeneration rates as estimated from sapling counts and helping with
collection of a woody plant species distribution survey. Note this team
will need to trek into remote parts of the island much of which is covered
in primary forest.
Herpetofauna team. This team is doing a range of surveys over the survey
season including estimation of the spread and abundance of an invasive
anole species, community structure of the reptile community in a range
of forest types and estimation of the population density of the giant frog
(called the crapaud) in the forests.
Electrofishing team. This team will be electrofishing in some of the
remotest streams on the island to complete an inventory of freshwater fish
communities. At times the team will be abseiling down into remote
gorges to complete the first fish surveys ever completed in these areas.
Invertebrate team. There is still incomplete knowledge of the diversity of
a number of the invertebrate taxa and there will be an invited specialist
invertebrate taxonomist each season working on completing collections of
specimens from across the island. Initial taxa to target will be beetles,
arachnids and freshwater invertebrate fauna.
The four field teams will be out all day and will return to the Clemson research
centre each night. There will also be bat mist netting being completed at a
number of sites across the island over the course of the survey season to
complete characterisation of the communities and students will have a
chance on one or two evenings to join these survey teams.
Marine Week
On the Sunday the groups will have their initial introduction to the marine
research and will spend half a day on a catamaran learning about the sea
mammal research that is happening on Dominica and they will get the
opportunity to search for sperm whale pods which will be located using
hydrophones. After getting back to shore the group will be taken to Fort
Shirley. The fort grounds have magnificent views out over the island. During
this week the groups will be completing one of the following options:
Why is the Caribbean such an important biodiversity hotspot?
How are the Caribbean endemic species of parrots faring?
What problems are being caused by invasive species on Caribbean islands?
What methods are used to survey river and stream fish communities?
Social structure and communication in sperm whales.
Completion of a Caribbean reef ecology course consisting of lectures and
in water practicals either by diving (if a qualifed diver) or snorkelling. The
lectures cover an introduction to coral reef ecosystems, coral and algal
species (growth forms and common species), mangrove and seagrass
ecology, tourism development impacts on Caribbean mangroves and
reefs ecologically important invertebrates (lobster fishery, conch fishery),
identification of coral reef fish (main reef fish families), reef survey
techniques (quadrats, transects, stereo video), threats to reefs (climate
change, fisheries, invasive species) and marine conservation strategies in
the Caribbean.
three days and they then join the Caribbean Reef Ecology course.
On the Saturday before the group leave they will have a rest day at the
Cabrits fort and will have a series of lectures and seminars about Dominica
history and culture before a round up session on the research achievements
over the week.
19
GREECE
These expeditions will take place in the stunning Greek Archipelago of islands
that are scattered between Greece and Turkey.
This expedition is unlike all other Opwall projects in that there are both marine
and terrestrial elements of the projects, but these are mixed together as part of
one combined research programme. This means that some parts of the day
will be spent focussing on a Greek Island Ecology course and terrestrial
biodiversity surveys, and some parts of the day (or entire days) will be spent
focussing on marine training, ecology and conservation.
The area respresents a unique biogeographical crossroad between three
continents; Europe, Asia, and Africa. This biodiversity hotspot has been
established by a complex series of geological events and climatic shifts which
have formed the archipelagos and isolated many terrestrial species throughout
the Pleistocene glaciations and corresponding fluctuations in the Aegean sealevel. Tectonic movements and eustatic sea levels have formed islands that
were once mountain tops of plateaus which, in times of lower sea levels, were
landmasses that linked Europe and Asia.
The Aegean sea, where the Cyclades and Dodecanese Islands are situated,
support a rare and unique biodiversity that includes some of the most
important remaining populations of marine mammals and turtles in the
Mediterranean, and have extensive areas of protected habitats such as
Posidonia seagrass beds and Coralligene reefs. These marine habitats and the
fauna that they house are also threatened (e.g. development, illegal fishing
practices, bicatch and persecution of marine mammals) and so the Opwall
groups will be part of a long term monitoring effort being implemented in
order to advise management efforts and protection strategies.
Terrestrial Elements
The terrestrial components of the project will contain the following:
Survey skills and fieldwork practices. Students will gain an awareness of
dangerous plants and animals, awareness of disease and health issues
when working under the hot Mediterranean sun and safe working practices
in remote locations.
Forest and habitat structure measurements. Students will be working in
teams each completing habitat measurements. In each plot grass volume is
estimated, the size structure of all trees and shrubs measured, and total
vegetation coverage is estimated.
20
COUNTRIES - GREECE
Biodiversity measurement and monitoring techniques. Students will
gain an understanding of survey techniques for a range of fauna and help
with various long term surveys, this will include:
Scan search sampling, timed searches, and pit fall trapping for
herpetofauna. The students will practice transect sampling by walking
along a sample route and searching for reptiles and amphibians on
either side of the transect line. All animals caught along the transect
line or in the stream will be identified. In addition, pit fall traps will be
set up for herpetofauna and groups will spend time checking under
rocks and around the ancient and modern stone walls which network
across the islands’ landscape.
Bird point counts and mist net sampling for birds. The students will
be able to join an early morning bird point count and learn how the
technique works. Students will also see how mist nets are used and
captured birds identified.
Camera trapping for large mammals. Several camera traps have been
set up around Samos to monitor populations of the European Golden
Jackal. Students will learn about camera trapping techniques and will
record any prints and droppings encountered.
Bat mist netting. This practical will involve working with the bat
scientist in the evening to set and empty mist nets.
All students will also gain training in collecting samples for genetic analyses,
preparing museum specimens and how to correctly catalogue these data.
Students will also be completing an Aegean Island ecology course
comprising the following lectures: Island landscapes (history,
management and threats to the landscape of the Aegean region),
sampling techniques (the types of surveys methods employed and how
certain species can act as indicators), biodiversity in the Aegean Islands
(biodiversity, biogeography and endemism in general terms and specific
to the region), classification focusing on the herpetofauna of the region
(reptiles and amphibians of the eastern Mediterranean), bird diversity and
classification, mammalian diversity and classification and conservation
strategies in Greece (Habitats and Bird Directives, ecotourism, traditional
products, future directions).
Marine Elements
There are three principle marine courses running on site. Students will be
able to complete one of the following:
Dive trained students will complete a marine and coastal ecology course
consisting of lectures and in-water, boat based or shore based practicals.
The practicals may be done by diving or by snorkelling. The lectures will
cover an introduction to Aegean Sea ecosystems, seagrass meadow
ecology and coralligene reefs, seagrass and algal species, marine
mammals (whales, dolphins, seals) and turtles, identification of coral reef
fish, reef survey techniques (quadrats, transects), threats to and
conservation of fisheries and marine ecosystems in the Aegean Sea.
A full PADI Open Water dive training course. Where possible, students
undertaking this option will also be able to attend some of the classes
and practical sessions of the ecology course.
having completed their theory and pool training) which takes 3 days.
The remaining time will be spent on the marine and coastal ecology
course and surveys.
In addition to the marine ecology lectures and practicals there will also be
opportunities to join teams completing surveys focussing on marine
mammals (dolphins, whales and the Mediterranean monk seal, one of the
most endangered mammals in the world), seagrass habitat mapping and
fisheries monitoring.
Facilities
Participants will fly to Athens and then take an onwards internal flight to the
island of Samos. This island is one of the most Eastern points in Europe –
it is less than 1km from the shoreline of mainland Turkey - and as such is
a hotspot for biodiversity exchange between Europe and Asia and hosts
animals of European, Asian and African origin. Samos is the only island in
the Mediterranean which has populations of the European Golden Jackal,
and one of the only islants in Greece to support populations of the
Mediterranean Chameleon.
In Samos they will stay in a remote part of the island a few kilometres from
the village of Pythagorio, at the research base of our marine partners
Archipelagos (Archipelagos Institute of Marine Conservation). There are
dormitory sleeping facilities with running water and shared bathrooms, and a
communal dining room area which also doubles up as a lecture theatre. The
base is located only a few meters from the beach and is on the southwestern
part of Samos, so you can see the sun rising behind the Turkish mountains on
a clear morning. The terrestrial surveys will be conducted in the nearby
saltmarsh, scrub and forest habitats that cover the island. Most of the
vegetation on Samos is phryganna dune and maquis scrub which means that
there isn’t much shade whilst conducting the surveys. The reward for this
however is the stunning views afforded of the Aegean sea.
Some of the surveys will be conducted in more remote parts of the Greek
archipelagos. To access these sites the teams will be out for a couple of days
at a time on a liveaboard research vessel. There are basic toilet and shower
facilities on-board, and the boat provides an amazing opportunity to
experience some of the more remote regions of this intriguing (and beautiful)
part of the world.
How can you quantify levels of forest and agricultural disturbance?
Are herpetofauna good indicators of habitat quality?
How has geological history affected biodiversity on the Greek Islands?
How does altitude affect bird distributions?
How does altitude affect herpetofaunal distributions?
How do bats vary their wing structure depending on habitat type?
What ecosystem services do seagrass beds perform?
What factors affect the health of fisheries in the Aegean?
What has been the effect of ancient vs. modern human activities on the
island’s biodiversity?
How does desertification affect the survivorship of herpetofauna on a given
island?
What type of floral assemblages and densities are needed to maintain healthy
Cycladic ecosystems?
What is the effect of road development on the survivorship of snakes
on a given island?
How does the presence of predators affect the diversity of herpetofauna
on a given island?
How has the age of the island affected the extant biodiversity?
21
SOUTH AFRICA
The South African expeditions are run in the Greater Kruger Area which is a
large unfenced area of over 2 million ha. This area incorporates numerous
smaller reserves and Kruger National Park, which is widely regarded as the
leading National Park in Africa. The school groups will be based in the Balule
reserve which is one of the privately owned Reserves that make up the
eastern-most section of Greater Kruger. The school teams are using identical
monitoring methods to those being used by university teams in other reserves
around South Africa and together these projects have the following objectives:
To quantify the impact of elephants around artificial and natural waterholes.
To utilise these data to calculate carrying capacity of reserves for elephants.
To assist with data collection on the distribution of large herbivores
and predators.
To complete annual surveys of winter bird community structure and density
in areas of habitat with differing levels of elephant impact.
At the end of the first week the groups will move to a marine training centre in
Sodwana Bay, South Africa.
Bush week
During their first week the groups will spend half their time in the bush either
in game view vehicles or on foot with armed guards and half their time in the
large fenced camps learning about bush skills (safe distances for viewing
game, tracks and signs of large mammals, how to use GPS and compass for
navigation, how to respond if a large herbivore or predator is encountered) and
having lectures on savannah ecology: Africa’s biodiversity (how to define and
quantify it, species diversity), southern African birds (classification, sample
techniques, conservation), herbivores of southern Africa (adaptation in rhinos,
buffalo, impala, nyala, wildebeest, zebra), predators (niche separation in lion,
leopard, cheetah, wild dog and hyena), managing elephant populations (social
structure, impact on habitat, methods of controlling elephant numbers),
African conservation issues (fenced reserves, maintaining balanced herbivore
22
COUNTRIES - SOUTH AFRICA
and predator communities, fire management) and a conservation synthesis
(calculating elephant carrying capacity).
The groups will also be involved in the following field based surveys:
Bird point counts. Groups of students with an experienced ornithologist
will trek to the start point of the count and then form an outward facing circle.
All bird species seen or heard over a 10 minutes period will be identified.
Elephant impact surveys. Each group will need to spend three half days
completing habitat surveys on 20 x 5m x 5m sample points within hectare
blocks with differing levels of elephant feeding densities. In each plot
grass volume is estimated from pasture metre readings, the size structure
of all trees and shrubs measured, total bush coverage calculated and
levels of elephant damage to each tree and shrub estimated using the
standardised Walker scale.
Game Transects Each group will also get the opportunity to undertake
monitoring of large mammal populations. Game transects are undertaken
on a vehicle driving a pre-planned route marking all game sightings on
a GPS.
Marine week
The students will spend their second week in Sodwana Bay in Kwa Zulu Natal,
South Africa and will be completing one of three options:
Completion of an Indian Ocean reef ecology course consisting of lectures
The lectures in Sodwana Bay cover an introduction to coral reef ecosystem
(characteristics of a reef, distribution of reefs in east Africa), coral and
algal species (growth forms and common species), megafauna (whales,
sharks, manta rays), mangrove and seagrass ecology (importance of
connective systems, threats to mangroves), economically important
invertebrates (lobster fishery, aquarium trade), identification of coral reef
fish (main reef fish families), reef survey techniques (quadrats, transects,
stereo video), threats to and conservation of reefs (protected marine areas
in South Africa).
three days and they then join the Indian Ocean reef ecology course.
Facilities
On the terrestrial section of the expedition students will be staying in the
Struwig section of Balule in either the Main Camp on the bank of the Olifants
River or in the rustic bush camp in the middle of the bushveld. The main
camp has electricity and a supply of hot water. There is a communal area
where lectures and meals are taken, a small tuck shop and a swimming pool
overlooking a resident raft of hippo on the river. Students here will be staying
in single-sex 6-bed dormitories or large tents. The bush camp offers an
amazing wilderness experience. There is only hot water if students keep the
fire going under the ‘donkey’ water heating system (a steel drum containing
water heated by a fire) and showers are glorified buckets with an attached
shower head. Students here camp out in large single-sex army tents. Both
camps are surrounded by electric fences. For the marine section of the
expedition students will be living in a camp site just outside the
iSimangaliso Wetlands Park. Each day they will transit to the ocean or the
dive training centre on the back of 4x4 vehicles from the camp which is
situated up on the sand dunes a few km from the beach. In the camp site
students will stay in tents, with shared hot and cold shower facilities and
there is a lecture room and communal eating area.
How are elephant herds structured?
What strategies are being used to prevent elephant herds causing too much
damage in fenced reserves?
What are the contrasting habitat requirements of black and white rhinos?
Contrast the social structure and niche separation of lions,
leopards and cheetah.
What methods are used to estimate populations of large herbivores
in reserves?
What are the advantages and disadvantages of controlled burning
in savannah reserves?
Is hunting of large herbivores and predators justified?
The effect of habitat on bird communities in lowveld reserves.
Does ecotourism provide a significant incentive for conservation
in South Africa?
How is the carrying capacity for elephants in a reserve calculated?
What are the main species of mammal that pose significant threats
to humans on foot in the bush?
How do you determine safe distances to approach large herbivores
and predators?
23
CUBA
The Cuba expedition is run on the reefs of the Punta Frances National Park in
the southern Island of Youth. The first week is spent learning to dive and
learning how to identify the reef fish and coral communities. The second week
is then spent helping with the stereo video fish surveys, line intercept video
surveys of coral cover, analysing the stereo video and line transect data,
collecting data on the sea-grass beds and macro-invertebrates, estimating
settlement rates from larval traps, helping with the manatee monitoring and
capture programme and the shark tagging programme. The research
objectives are:
To quantify the reef fish communities in the Punta Frances National Park
and identify any significant changes from previous years.
To quantify coral cover and community structure in the Punta Frances
National Park and identify any significant changes from previous years.
To quantify changes in seagrass density, macro-invertebrates
communities and larval settlement rates in the non reef areas of
Punta Frances National Park.
To identify the manatee population and preferred feeding areas in the
southern Isle of Youth.
To assist with shark tagging as part of a Cuba wide study of shark migration
patterns and population levels.
Training week
In week one the groups will be split into those who are completing their PADI
Open Water dive training course in full, those who have already completed
their theory and pool training in their home country and will be doing their
open water dives followed by in-water practicals designed to prepare them for
the marine surveys, and those who are already dive trained (or don’t want to
dive at all) and are working on the reef ecology course and preparing for the
fish and reef surveys. The purpose of this first week is to get the students
trained up to be able to help with the surveys in week 2. Students will have
the following lectures; Introduction to coral reef systems (characteristics of
24
COUNTRIES - CUBA
reefs, reef formation, reef distribution), macro-invertebrates (sponge guilds,
anemone guilds, mollusc guild), coral identification (main coral species
found in Punta Frances), reef fish (herbivore guild, piscivore guild, omnivore
guild), marine survey methods (stereo video surveys, underwater visual
census methods, benthic surveys) global threats to reefs (fisheries, coastal
development, global warming) and marine conservation (marine protected
areas in Cuba, management techniques).
Research week
In week two the teams will be divided into six groups and will rotate between
the following surveys:
Reef Fish and Shark surveys
On this day the students will be staying overnight on the Felipe Poey
research ship and diving to help with the stereo-video surveys of the reef
fish communities. In the evening long lines will be set and in the early
morning these long lines checked for sharks. All captured sharks are
measured and tagged before release.
Lionfish and Coral surveys
On this day the students will be based on a second research ship and
helping with line intercept video surveys of coral communities and hunting
surveys to capture Lionfish that are an invasive species in the Caribbean.
Students will also be involved in processing of captured Lionfish
specimens and will return to the hotel for the second night.
Seagrass and Marine Macro-invertebrate surveys
For this day the students will be based in tents in the Punta Frances
National Park and will be snorkelling in the non reef areas of the reserve.
The objective is to complete a series of detailed transects covering the
whole reserve to obtain quantitative data on sea grass density and
distribution of macro-invertebrates (molluscs, echinoderms etc) along
transects from the shore to the reef edge.
Larval Settlement surveys
Larval traps have been set at a series of sites in the Punta Frances Reserve
and these need emptying and the juvenile lobsters and fish identified.
Manatee surveys and capture
On this day the students will be working on a research ship but staying in
the hotel overnight. The manatee surveys are conducted in the mangrove
channels and lagoons using side scan sonar surveys or observational
transects. The position of all sighted manatees are logged and
environmental data (salinity, temperature, aquatic vegetation) collected at
each site to determine the importance of freshwater upwellings and
vegetation communities in affecting the distribution of manatees. In
addition the movement of manatees is being studied using marked
animals and students will be helping with manatee captures using nets.
Any manatees captured will be measured, the sex determined, DNA and
blood samples taken and the animal marked before release.
How will climate change affect coral reefs?
How can you most accurately assess fish and benthic communities on reefs?
What is a symbiotic relationship and what examples can be found on reefs?
What are the benefits of sea grass beds and mangroves to marine ecosystems?
How can manatee populations be assessed?
What are the main threats to manatees.
What management actions are being taken to protect sharks in the Caribbean?
What are the main Marine Protected Areas in Cuba and how are they managed?
Reef fish and coral analysis
On this day the students will be involved in analysing the stereo video
footage gathered by previous teams and which is displayed on a
computer screen with the footage from the left and right videos
synchronised. All species filmed need to be identified and the length
estimated by clicking on the screen on the front and tail of each fish on
the left screen and again on the right. The software then calculates the
length of the fish, and this needs to be recorded in an excel table against
each species name. In addition the video coral intercept data will
be analysed.
Facilities
All the teams will be staying in the Colony Hotel for the first week and 3-4
nights in the second week. The Colony Hotel has air conditioned rooms,
showers and a swimming pool. Breakfast and dinner are taken at the hotel
with packed lunches provided for the field team. The Felipe Poey research
vessel is being used as the platform for the stereo video surveys and shark
tagging. The Felipe Poey has berths both above and below decks, though
most people choose to sleep under the stars on the top deck . During the
two days when the students are based in the Punta Frances reserve they will
be staying in tents and have access to bucket showers only.
25
PERU
During the two weeks of the expedition the students will be based on research
ships in the Pacaya-Samiria National Reserve which is the second largest
protected area in Peru, spanning over 20,000 km2 of tropical rainforest and is a
truly exceptional wilderness area. There are two main objectives of the
research programme;
To collect data on the sustainability of forest resource use by the Cocama
Indians within the Reserve.
To provide information on the impacts of climate change and
anthropogenic disturbance in the Amazon. The second objective is made
possible by long-term datasets that are gathered using standardised
methods and effort. Flooded forests are more sensitive to climate change
than non-flooded forests, because very high water levels reduce the
amount of dry land available in the reserve to around 2% thereby affecting
population levels of species such as agouti, deer and peccaries, whilst
very low water levels cause problems for the fish populations and
consequently dolphins. Therefore the Samiria Reserve is a perfect site to
study the impacts of both climate change and exploitation on wildlife and
overall biodiversity.
Dolphins and wading birds are being used as indicators of the aquatic
hydroscape, macaws, small primates and understorey birds as indicators of
the terrestrial landscape, fish as indicators of the impact of fisheries, primates
and other terrestrial wildlife as indicators of wildlife management of bushmeat,
caimans as indicators of the recovery of species after excessive overhunting
and turtles as indicators of intensive restocking management. Expeditions
from January to March are in the high water season (water rising from January
to March) and from late June until August are in the low water season (water
levels falling from June to August). Over these seasons, surveys of three sites
will be completed on the Samiria River – the mouth, Tacshcocha and Huisto
but the exact schedule depends on water levels and when sites can be
reached. During their two weeks in the Amazon the students will be
26
COUNTRIES - PERU
undertaking three main tasks; helping with the biodiversity surveys,
completing an Amazonian Wildlife and Conservation course and completing
research to make a presentation on one of a series of Amazonian related
research topics.
Biodiversity Monitoring
Students will be split into small groups of students and will have the
opportunity to take part in the following research projects over the two weeks.
Each student will be expected to join one of the morning and one of the
afternoon activities and to participate in data entry.
Primate, large mammals and game bird transects. Census trails between
2-3 km in length are surveyed repeatedly at each of the sites. Information
registered on a census includes: day, site, species, number of individuals
and perpendicular distance from the individual to the transect line and
distance travelled. The method and theories behind DISTANCE sampling will
be explained to students and they will be taught how to recognise different
species and the main identification features. These data are then combined
with the camera trap data to estimate abundance of the main species and
using time-space analyses to estimate densities. The density data are then
used to calculate whether hunting levels are sustainable.
Macaw Surveys. Boat based point counts are used to monitor macaws with
each site separated by 500m. Fifteen minutes will be spent at each point
with censuses carried out twice a day. Within the fifteen minute counts, all
macaw species either perched or flying are noted and the time of
observation and distances of the birds from the observer estimated.
Wading bird surveys. These surveys include 5km transects divided into
500m subsections where all river edge bird species are recorded.
Understorey birds. Standard length mist nets are set at replicate sites in
a range of habitats (riverine forest, closed canopy forest, tree fall gaps,
levees, liana forest, palm forest). All birds captured are identified and
measured. Catch per unit effort data are compared between years to
identify population trends.
River Dolphin Transects (includes turtles when appropriate river levels).
5km transects at each site are travelled downstream using a boat with
the engine turned off. Information collected on sightings includes:
species, group size, group composition, behaviour (travelling, fishing,
playing), time and position at first sighting. During these surveys
students will be taught how to record the distribution and behaviour of
both pink and grey river dolphins. The turtle monitoring method consists
of registering the number of individuals sighted, either sunbathing or
swimming. Students will be taught how to differentiate between the two
turtle species found in the reserve.
Fish Surveys. Students will be able to working with a team who are
setting standard gill nets to quantify the catch per unit effort
(cpue) experienced by the Cocama Indians. The students will learn how
gill-net surveys are implemented and will help with measuring, weighing
and ientifying all fish captured. They will also take part in surveys using
fishing lines.
Habitat surveys. These surveys are designed to produce quantitative data
on the various forest habitats (size structure and biomass of trees, levels
of light penetration and ground vegetation, regeneration rates).
Night time caiman surveys. This survey involves spotlight surveys of the
river after dark to locate and identify caiman species in order to estimate
population size and distributions. Noosing is used to capture caiman to
obtain data on morphological measurements, sex and age.
Facilities
Accommodation will be on the Rio Amazonas research ship where students
are in shared cabins (6-10 people) with fans. There are flush toilet and
shower facilities on board and electricity for charging computers and other
items for part of the day. Living on a research ship in the heart of the
biodiverse rich Amazon is a truly memorable experience.
How can camera traps and transect surveys be used to estimate
large mammal and primate popualtions?
How can sustainable hunting levels be calculated?
Why are flooded forests particularly susceptible to glocal climate change?
How do caiman species separate their niches?
Why are macaws good indicators of forest quality and how have their
populations changed in recent years in the Pacaya Samiria Reserve?
How can mist net surveys of birds be used to quantify change
in bird communities?
How do the 12 species of primates in the Pacaya Samiria Reserve separate
their niches?
Amazonian Wildlife and Conservation course
The Amazonian Wildlife and Conservation course comprises lectures and
related activities/discussions on Amazon geography and biodiversity
(definition of biodiversity, formation of the Amazon, white and black water
rivers), flooded forest and upland forest ecology (terrestrial, arboreal and
aqautic wildlife of upland and flooded forests), conservation strategies in the
Amazon (protected areas, community based conservation, certification
strategies), survey methods (theory of survey techniques and how the data
are used), Pacaya-Samiria bird (macaws, trogons and kingfishers, toucans,
sexual selection in birds), mammals of Pacaya-Samiria (anteaters, sloths,
cats, dolphins and manatees), Amazonian fish (species richness, piranha,
electric eels, arapaima), amphibians and reptiles (poison dart frogs,
dangerous snakes, caiman, turtles), wildlife monitoring and calculating
sustainable hunting levels, examples of best practice conservation
management in the Amazon. During the course the students will also get the
opportunity to visit a Cocama Indian community.
27
GUYANA
The Guyana research project is run in the heart of the vast Guiana Shield
forests that make-up Northern South America. This 2-week expedition gives
students the opportunity to see much of the stunning wildlife of the Guiana
Shield and to help with data collection for a biodiversity assessment survey
and takes students into the heart of one of the last strongholds of intact
tropical rainforest left on the planet. The teams will start at the beautiful
Iwokrama River Lodge and Reseach Centre (IRL) situated on the bank of the
Essequibo River and after 2 days will travel to one of the field camps in the
Iwokrama/Surama forests where they will spend the rest of the first week.
During the second week the groups will be completing a five day boat survey
along the Burro-Burro River through the centre of the Iwokrama Forest where
there is a chance of encountering large animals such as anacondas, jaguars,
and giant river otters. Students contribute to the data collection by working
with the teams gathering data on the population density of large mammals,
birds, bats, invertebrates, reptiles and amphibians to enable better
understanding of forest community dynamics, and their responses to climate
change and human impacts.
In the first week the volunteers will gain some forest survival skills such as
how to live in field camps in hammocks, navigation and trekking skills as well
as the main risks posed by animals and diseases in the forests and rivers and
how to reduce those risks. They will also have lectures and associated
practicals on Guiana Shield forest ecology which will give them some
background information on the ecology in the area and teach them how to
identify some of the commoner species. After a couple of days of this initial
training the students will move to the first satellite camp to help the science
teams with bird, bat, amphibian, reptile and large mammal surveys.
In the second week the team will be travelling in boats down the Burro-Burro
river through the heart of the Iwokrama rainforest, from the village of Surama
28
COUNTRIES - GUYANA
in the savannahs to the south of Iwokrama. The purpose of this second
section of the trip is to gather standardised data on the water birds and large
mammals encountered as well as various indicators of human disturbance.
Forest week
During the first week, which is split between the Iwokrama Research Centre
and the first field camp, the students will complete the following activities:
Introduction to the Guiana Shield forests.
Jungle skills training.
Learning about biodiversity monitoring techniques and helping
with field surveys. This consists of a lecture and field practical
based ecology course on Guiana Shield Forest Ecology comprising
lectures on Amazonian geography and structure (worldwide biodiversity
hotspots, formation of Guiana Shield, development in Guyana, El Niño),
survey methods (census surveying and DISTANCE sampling) taxonomy
and evolution (classification systems, birds, amphibians and reptiles), bats
(adaptation, bat diversity and identifying the commoner families) large
mammals (primates, anteaters, peccaries and deer, cats and otters), birds
(lekking species, antbirds, hole nesting species), and conservation
synthesis (the importance of conservation, human disturbance, the
importance of monitoring, threats to Guyana’s forests, REDD scheme).
The practical sessions will include:
Mist net sampling for birds. Learning how to identify birds in the
hand and take morphometric measurements.
Scan search sampling for herpetofauna. From forest transects and
scan searching water bodies for amphibians.
Large mammal and bird transect surveys. When a mammal or bird
(named on the target species list) is detected the species, number of
individuals, distance travelled along the transect and perpendicular
distance of the mammal to the observer will be recorded.
Mist netting for bats. Identification skills, and learning how to take
morphometric measurements.
Example research questions for IB extended essays, EPQ scheme
and field presentations (see www.opwall.com for full list of topics)
Pit fall sampling, light trapping, and scan sampling for invertebrates.
Can reduced-impact logging be used as a tool for biodiversity conservation
in tropical forests?
The role of bats and birds in forest regeneration and maintaining
forest biodiversity.
Spotlight surveys for amphibians and reptiles. To assess frog
communities and opportunistically sighted reptiles. Species encountered
will be identified and the main identification features explained.
Burro-Burro week
During the Burro-Burro week the students will be:
Conducting standardised surveys of water birds
Conducting surveys of giant otter status and distribution
The main research objective of these surveys is to complete annual
monitoring of key wildlife indicators of the health of the river. The teams will
sleep at camps on the banks of the river each night, and will slowly navigate
the river in the daytime, searching for wildlife. Records of target bird and
mammal species will be noted by the students, providing the yearly
monitoring data.
The role of large mammals in forest regeneration and maintaining
forest biodiversity.
How can standardised wildlife surveys be used to effectively monitor
changes in forest community dynamics?
Using fixed width transects as a method for surveying Giant River Otters.
Facilities
At the Iwokrama River Lodge on the bank of the Essequibo river the
accommodation is in dormitories with normal washing facilities. There is a
well equipped research centre with a lecture room and restaurant overlooking
the river. After a couple of days of induction and training the groups will head
out to the more remote field camps. In these camps, accommodation will be
in hammocks with bashas and mosquito nets. There are temporary field
toilets and washing will be done in the rivers. For the river survey based
week the groups will be in hammocks in temporary overnight camps. This is
a deep forest experience and students will be helping boat drivers navigate
rapids and fallen trees.
29
TRANSYLVANIA
This expedition is different to the others in that the teams are mobile
throughout the two weeks and will be spending a few nights in a series of
picturesque and remote Saxon villages in the foothills of the Carpathians
within the Tarnava Mare Natura 2000 Area. This area comprises 85,000 ha of
particularly rich landscape and is one of Europe’s last medieval landscapes,
with probably the most extensive flower-rich grasslands remaining in lowland
Europe as well as the continent’s last lowland bears and wolves. The
landscape still presents a medieval land-use pattern - forested ridges and
gullies, pasture and hay meadows on gentler slopes and terraces, and arable
land and smaller meadows on the flat valley bottoms near villages.
Inclusion of the area in the EU Natura 2000 network enables funding to be
obtained to maintain the low input traditional based farming that has created
such a high biodiversity. The Opwall teams are completing an annual survey of
the effectiveness in maintaining the traditional farming practices and in
protecting the biodiversity in this outstanding area. The work is being
completed with ADEPT, a Romanian based NGO, with the Opwall teams
providing annual data on a series of biodiversity performance and farming
criteria.
Tarnava Mare surveys
The study sites have been grouped into clusters of 3 villages and over the
course of the expedition each group of students will spend 4 - 5 days
surveying in each of the target valleys and will then trek over the hills to the
next village. In each valley the students will be split into one of several study
teams and over the course of the two weeks will have the chance to participate
in each of the teams for at least two days.
Large mammals
This team will position camera traps in key locations in the forests and on the
valley transects in order to capture sightings of large mammals such as bears,
wolves, wild boar and deer. The team will also visit likely vantage points at dawn
or dusk to see large mammals and will record any prints or scat encountered.
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COUNTRIES - TRANSYLVANIA
Small Mammals and Herpetofauna
This team will set small mammal traps late at night which will be checked
and emptied each morning. They will also complete standard searches around
the edge of river and wetland areas for amphibians and will walk the longer
sample routes around the valleys either side of the village, recording mammal
and herpetofauna sightings and signs.
Birds
The bird team will be leaving at dawn and walking the long transect sample
routes that traverse the valleys either side of the village. They will complete
point count surveys at 500m intervals en route, looking for sightings and
listening for calls of the wide range of birds found in the area. The bird
assemblage includes an abundance of woodpeckers, shrikes, larks, warblers
and many birds of prey (such as eagles and hawks). In the evening call-back
surveys are also completed for corn crake and owls.
Plants
The plant team will be focusing on target species which are good indicators of
grassland types or have medicinal use. Transects will be completed in low,
medium and high nature value grasslands along the different sample routes
where the presence of different key species will be noted. Because this area
contains some of the most diverse grasslands in Europe this project will be a
chance to work in a rarely seen and spectacular habitat.
Butterflies
The butterfly team will be covering the same 50m transects as the plant team,
recording the butterflies encountered and using sweep nets to catch and identify
the rarer species. Light trapping will also be completed for moths in the
evenings, with early mornings then spent identifying those species caught.
Farms
The traditional farming methods used in this region play a crucial role in the
maintenance of high biodiversity. Part of the monitoring effort therefore
includes visiting a number of farms in each village and recording the numbers
of livestock, dates of grassland cutting, type of arable crops etc. They will also
be gathering data on bear and wolf attacks on the livestock, and will have a
unique opportunity to experience methods of farming, which were lost many
years ago in most of the world.
The students will also be completing a Transylvanian Ecology course
comprising the following lectures: Transylvanian landscapes (Saxon history,
management and threats to the landscape and farming strategies), sampling
techniques (the types of surveys methods employed and how certain species
can act as indicators), biodiversity in Tarnava Mare (biodiversity and
endemism in general terms and specific to the region), classification
focusing on the mammals and herpetofauna of the region (amphibians and
snakes of Europe and bears, wolves and cats), bird diversity and
classification, and conservation strategies in Transylvania (habitats and bird
directives, ecotourism, traditional products).
How are European brown bear populations estimated?
Facilities
This Opwall expedition gives students the chance to join a small team which
will move from remote village to village across the region. Each village is
nestled in one of many valleys running North to South, and so after
completing surveys for four or five days in each village the team will trek up
the side of the adjacent valley and down into the next one. Luggage will be
transported on oxcart or on a 4x4 vehicle.
How has farming changed in Romania since the fall of Ceaucescu?
Can wolf populations be sustained within Europe?
How do the nine woodpecker species of Europe separate their niches?
Why is Transylvania such a hotspot for European amphibian diversity?
What is the relationship between the Great Burnet plant, the Large Blue
butterfly and ants.
Are European Union farm subsidies a threat or benefit to nature conservation?
Do the Habitat and Birds Directives make a difference to nature
conservation in Europe?
When in the villages teams will usually be staying in basic campsites where
they can pitch their tents under the fruit trees, and where the water in the
showers is heated by the sun each day. Meals are locally prepared and the
majority of the food on the expedition is baked, grown, or farmed in the same
village in which it is consumed. In some villages volunteers will be able to
stay in local guesthouses which gives a fantastic insight into the Saxon
culture and traditions.
On this expedition almost all surveys are conducted on foot. Volunteers can
be out surveying the remote forests, meadows and grasslands for long
periods of time each day, in addition to collecting more data during the
evenings where possible, so it is helpful to have a reasonable level of fitness.
31
ECUADOR
This Ecuador expedition runs in two very different forest types: Andean tropical
cloud forest and lowland tropical forest. The first week is run high in the
species-rich cloud forest of Santa Lucia Reserve - famous for its diversity of
bird species and a part of the Chocó-Andean protected forest corridor in North
West Ecuador. Students will spend their first week at the Santa Lucia lodge, a
two hour trek up into the Andean forests, with an international team of
researchers who are collecting data on the carbon, biodiversity and also
assessing the health of the forest. The data collected will contribute to a
submission of the forests to be funded and protected under the Reduction in
Emissions from Deforestation and forest Degradation (REDD+ schemes). The
first week will also prepare students for the adventures of heading into the
lowland jungle camp.
The second week involves a transfer and a strenuous trek deep into the Chocóan
tropical lowland forests of North West Ecuador to a jungle camp. This site has
recently been identified by our scientific team as maintaining one of the last
healthy populations of the critically endangered brown-headed spider monkey
(Ateles fusciceps), other primates and species now rare or absent throughout
most of Ecuador, such as the Jaguar (Panthera onca). Operation Wallacea will
be part of a team at this biodiversity hotspot site that is collecting information
on these endangered species and their habitat with the aim of submitting the
forests to be managed as a community protected reserve
Cloud forest week
During the forest week the students will complete:
Jungle skills and fieldwork practices. Students will gain an awareness of
dangerous plants and animals; awareness of disease and health issues
working in a tropical rainforest; safe working practices in remote locations.
This will prepare you for the different forest types – both cloud forest and
lowland jungle forest.
Forest measurement. Students will be trained to collect habitat
measurements within our forest plots that aim to understand the role
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COUNTRIES - ECUADOR
of disturbance in maintaining such a high diversity of tree species in
tropical rainforests.
Carbon monitoring plot. Students will work in teams to establish carbon
dynamics plots. These hectare plots contribute to a global network of
forest plots that aim to understand the impact of global climate change on
tropical forests. These are the first plots established for the Western
Ecuadorian Andes. Students will work in 20m x 20m subplots to collect
data on woody species, the diameter at breast height of all woody species
and fit dendrometers that measure the growth rates of trees.
Biodiversity measurement and monitoring techniques. Students will gain
an understanding of survey techniques for a range of fauna and help
with various long term surveys, this is likely to include:
Bird point counts. Where the students will be able to join an early
morning bird point count and learn how the technique works.
Camera Trapping survey. Involving setting camera trap sites,
conducting a habitat survey at each site, collection and processing of
collected data (images).
Establishment of pitfall traps for herpetofauna. The students
will practice setting up pitfall traps used to survey for reptiles
and amphibians.
Light trapping for invertebrates. A light trap will be set to monitor
nocturnal invertebrates.
Bat survey and monitoring techniques. This practical will introduce
students to techniques used to survey and monitor bats. They will be
introduced to bat netting and electronic bat detectors. In the evening
they will compare bat densities in a range of habitats to familiarise
themselves with the techniques.
Lowland Forest Week
The Brown-headed Spider Monkey is considered a ‘flagship’ species as it
can focus conservation attention on the area. It is also an ‘umbrella species’
as it requires pristine forest to survive hence protecting the habitat of this
species also protects a myriad of others with less demanding habitat
requirements. Students will work with our team of international scientists and
‘parabiologists’ (indigenous and community members trained in collection
of scientific datasets) to:
Habituate a group of spider monkeys and collect behavioural and
movement information to understand their habitat requirement.
Collect data from a network of 10x100m forest plots used to study fruiting
phenology to determine the carrying capacity of the forest system and
guide reserve design.
Map forest types to ground truth satellite imagery for reserve design.
How can you best design a protected area to conserve primates?
Why are there so many species in Neotropical forests?
How can you quantify the effects of forest disturbance on species?
Why can a little bit of disturbance be good for species diversity?
How can you estimate the population number of tropical forest
cats or spectacled bears?
What is community-based ecotourism and what are its benefits
to conservation?
What are the impacts of climate change to lowland and cloud forests?
Can the new REDD+ scheme make forests valuable enough to stop
deforestation for timber?
Establish and maintain a network of camera traps to build an inventory
of mammals.
Help with biodiversity surveys of invertebrates, herpetofauna, birds and
mammals using the techniques learned in the cloud forest site.
Facilities
In the cloud forest week students will be staying at the Santa Lucia lodge
and provides sleeping accommodation in a mix of double and shared rooms.
There are hot showers with particularly spectacular views over the forest.
Bathrooms are shared and in addition to ordinary toilets, the lodge has
compost toilets. Eating is a communal activity and meals, cooked by reserve
staff, combine traditional Ecuadorian and international recipes and where
possible staff will use organic produce from the garden. The second week in
the lowland forest will be based in a remote jungle camp where the students
will be sleeping in hammocks or tents. Working at pioneering field research
sites in new areas such as this one is a very different experience and is much
tougher than the cloud forest week! Toilet facilities are ‘back to nature’ earth
closets with washing with biodegradable soap takes place in curtained off
cubicles where you can pour water over yourself.
Optional Galapagos week
There is the option to swap the second jungle week or add an extra week,
and travel to the Galapagos Islands. Based on San Cristóbal Island (or
Chatham Island) you will have the opportunity to see some of the unique
species that inspired Darwin and see some presentations delivered by
biologists from the University of San Francisco de Quito. Trips include the
opportunity to visit famous marine snorkeling sites to see schools of
hammerhead sharks, eagle rays, scorpion fish, harlequin wrasse and
Galapagos sharks. Qualified SCUBA divers will also have the chance to dive
in the region. Please note getting and staying on the Galapagos Islands is not
cheap and there is a substantial additional cost over and above the costs of
the Opwall expeditions – please check with your local Opwall office for the
costings and details of arrangements.
33
CHINA
This expedition consists of a week working with Chinese biodiversity research
academic teams in the Qinghai Plateau (part of the Tibetan plateau) in western
China followed by a week in the Qingling Mountain forests in central China.
During the first week the groups will learn about Tibetan Plateau ecology and
help with some research projects whilst in the second week in the Qingling
Mountains they will be learning about Chinese Wildlife Conservation Issues
and helping with a different range of research projects.
The Tibetan Plateau is a vast (2,500km2) high plateau (4,000 to 5,000 metres)
in southwestern China which encompasses all of the Tibet Autonomous Region
and much of Qinghai province. The region lies to the north of the Himalayas
and Mount Everest on the China-Nepal border. Qinghai Lake in the Qinghai
Province is China’s largest lake and is located at the crossroads of several bird
migration routes across Asia. Many birds use Qinghai as an intermediate stop
during migration and it is an important breeding area for a number of
threatened species. In addition the grasslands surrounding the lake are the sole
remaining habitat for the Critically Endangered Przewaslki’s Gazelle. The
Chinese Academy of Sciences has reported that the lake is threatened with loss
of surface area due to livestock over-grazing, land reclamations and natural
causes. The lake surface area has decreased by 12% in the last century. The
Beijing Forestry University is completing a series of long term studies on key
taxa in the Qinghai Lake region and the Opwall teams have the opportunity to
join these research projects.
At the end of the Qinghai Lake week the group would be transferred back to
Xining airport and would fly to Xi’an which for many centuries was the capital
of China and lies at the end of the Silk Road. This city is also home to the
Terracotta Warriors. The group would be transferred by road to the Chanqing
National Nature Reserve in the Qingling mountains to the south of Xi’an.
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COUNTRIES - CHINA
The Qingling Mountains are a major east-west mountain range in southern
Shaanxi Province and provide a natural boundary between the North and
South of the country, as well as supporting a highly biodiverse fauna. Within
this mountain range are a series of reserves and for the second week the
groups will be staying in the Changqing National Nature Reserve which covers
nearly 30,000ha of rugged mountain terrain at heights between 1000m and
3000m. The reserve is pristine oak-conifer forest with deep ravines and thick
bamboo thickets. There is a population of Giant Panda in the reserve and other
iconic species such as Golden Takin, Asiatic Black Bear, Golden Monkey and
Golden Pheasant. In addition it is also the breeding site for the Crested Ibis, a
species thought to be extinct until its rediscovery in 1985. This is a reserve to
which large numbers of mainly Chinese tourists visit to catch a glimpse of
pandas in the wild. However, their access to the reserve is limited to a few
trails and Beijing Forestry University is completing a series of studies
comparing panda distribution in visited and non visited parts of the reserve,
the effects of habitat restoration on the recovery of the Golden Takin and
additional biodiversity and behavioural studies.
Qinghai Plateau
During this first week the students will complete a lecture course on Tibetan
Plateau Ecology. The first day will comprise lectures about Tibetan culture and
an introduction to the ecology of the area and is designed to get the students
accustomed to the 3000m altitude and a little more rested before starting on
their field research. Then for the next 5 days the group will be split into
smaller groups and will be rotating between the following project and working
for a day on each of them:
Przewalski's Gazelle. These teams would be walking transects across the
grasslands to complete DISTANCE transects to estimate populations in the
different areas of the reserve. The entire world population (approximately
1000) of these critically endangered deer occurs in this area and studies
are being undertaken to assess the best grassland management strategy to
protect this species
Behaviour of Black-necked Cranes and Bar-headed Geese.
Qinghai lake has 20% of the world’s population of Black-necked Cranes
and many of the world’s population of Bar-Headed Geese – a species that
has physiological adaptations enabling it to fly high enough to cross the
Himalayas. Qinghai Lake is a major breeding site for this species and the
researchers have established 19 live feed video monitoring cameras to
record breeding behaviour. Students on this project will be helping with
analysis of breeding behaviour of these two species.
Water bird and grassland bird surveys. Students on this project will be
working with an ornithologist completing counts of water birds and
grassland birds at a series of sites around the Qinghai Lake.
camera traps are also designed to monitor species such as Serow, Goral,
Muntjac and Asiatic Black Bear and the students will be helping with
checking these traps and also running a live trapping programme for
small mammals.
Golden Snub-nosed Monkey ecology and behaviour. Small groups
will be helping a researcher with scan and focal sampling studies of troops
to determine activity budgets and feeding patterns.
Beetle diversity. The beetle diversity of the reserve is being studied using
pitfall traps, light traps and flight intercept traps and the students will be
helping empty the traps and sort the captured beetles into major groups.
Small mammals surveys. Pikas are the most abundant small mammals
on the plateau grassland and students working on this project would be
helping with surveys of population densities and their impact on nitrous
oxide fluxes.
Facilities
At the Qinghai Lake the students will be based in a Tibetan nomad style camp.
In the Qingling mountains accommodation will be in a research centre dorm
rooms with flush toilets and hot showers.
Grassland management. Students on this project would be helping with
quadrat studies of the effects of different grazing regimes on floristic
diversity and on greenhouse gas emissions.
Qingling Mountains
The students at this site would complete a Chinese Wildlife Conservation
Issues lecture course over the course of their week in the Changqing
Reserve. The group will then be split into smaller groups and will be rotating
between the following projects and working for a day on each of them:
Assessing the impact of heavily used tourism trails on panda
distribution in the reserve. Researchers are completing transects
surveys for pandas and signs of their presence in heavily accessed tourist
areas and in areas where no tourists are allowed.
Camera trapping and small mammal trapping. The reserve has a
network of camera traps designed to monitor recovery of species such as
the Golden Takin – member of the goat-antelope or Caprid family. The
Nesting behaviour of Black-necked Cranes or Bar-headed Geese on the
Qinghai Plateau.
Management actions needed to preserve the Critically Endangered
Przewalski's Gazelle.
Changes in water bird communities in Qinghai Lake on the Tibetan Plateau.
Estimating Giant Panda populations in the Qinghai mountains.
Advantages and disadvantages of point counting to describe bird
communities in the Qingling mountains.
Factors affecting the population levels of Golden Takin.
Social structure and activity patterns of the Golden Snub-nosed Monkeys.
35
FRANCE AND ITALY
This expedition gives groups the chance to participate in biodiversity research in
one of the most beautiful regions of France but unlike other expeditions where
the second week is often spent learning a skill, this expedition enables groups in
their second week to visit a series of National Parks and protected areas in
southern France and northern Italy to learn about Alpine and Mediterranean
ecology. The most cost effective way of getting to the start point of the
expedition is to arrange flights to London and a coach will then take the
incoming group to the Cevennes. This means the expedition can be combined
with visits to see London (e.g. the Darwin and Wallace Collections at the London
Natural History Museum and Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew) and Paris en route
(Eiffel Tower, cathedral de Notre Dame). The expedition finishes at the Parco
Nazionale Gran Paraiso, the oldest National Park in Italy and groups can travel
back to London on the returning coach visiting other European cities and
countries on the way back or alternatively take a flight back from Turin to London
on one of the low cost airlines. The itinerary for outgoing or returning routes to
visit other parts of Europe can be organised through the Opwall travel team.
The first week is based in the Cevennes National Park in southern France where
the teams will be helping with running an annual monitoring programme on a
range of taxa, as well as helping on some specific animal behaviour and
ecology projects. The Cevennes is situated at the biogeographic cross-roads
between the Mediterranean and the Atlantic, and the National Park protects an
area of almost 300,000ha. There a few places in Europe which have such a
diverse range of landforms and geology, from the granite massif of the Mont
Lozere to the depths of the Tarn Gorge limestone, and an accompanying rich
biodiversity which sees 89 species of mammal, 208 species of birds and 35
species of reptiles and amphibians represented within its fauna.
During this week they will also complete an Alpine and Mediterranean ecology
course which covers many parts of the AP Biology and Environmental Science
courses. For the second week the groups will be travelling by coach and
camping in National Parks to see firsthand habitats from the Camargue delta to
the Alpine meadows and their associated faunal communities. Many of the
concepts that the group will have learned in the Alpine and Mediterranean
ecology course will be illustrated on this week long journey (e.g. adaptations
of various species to different habitats).
36
COUNTRIES - FRANCE AND ITALY
Cevennes Mountain Biodiversity Week
Working with field scientists, science staff from the Cevennes National Park and
field centre staff, students will rotate between the six research projects described
below. In addition each evening there will be lectures describing a different
aspect of Mediterranean and Alpine Ecology and many of these lectures will be
directly relevant for AP Biology or Environmental Science courses.
Herpetofauna surveys A small group of students led by a herpetologist
walk transect lines and check pitfall traps for reptiles. Short-toed eagles
are reptile-specialists and this information will give valuable information
about prey availability for this emblematic raptor.
Mammal surveys Small mammal traps are baited and set in the
evenings and students will check traps and help process any captures in a
morning session. Distribution of small mammals is poorly recordedin the
area and their population size and distribution is linked to raptor
distribution. In the afternoon the students will work with a scientist to
estimate population size and distribution of the common genet using
indirect methods (camera trapping, hair-traps and sign surveys). The
common genet is a small carnivore closely related to the mongoose,
whose presence and abundance can be indicative of forest health.
Landscape ecology surveying Students will assist a landscape ecology
scientist in carrying out vegetation and tree mapping (tree age, species and
density of potential nest trees) and compiling landscape metrics data
(altitude, aspect, proximity to water and open ground) to help link
distribution of raptors (short-toed and golden eagles) and habitat quality.
Invertebrate surveys Students will accompany a scientist walking
transect lines and recording butterfly, cricket and grasshopper species, to
inventory and map distribution of these insect Orders in different grassland
parts of the Park. For part of the day the team will be helping with an
inventory of saproxylic beetles which feed on dead wood. This taxon has
been identified by the Park management as critical indicators of forest
health. Students will assist in trapping and identifying saproxylic beetles
using flight intercept traps as well as searching dead wood.
Behavioural studies on Przewalski’s horse Students will join an
equine ethologist in observing a number of family and stallion groups of
the distinctive Przewalski’s horse, the last wild horse species on earth.
Extinct in the wild by 1966, ex-situ conservation techniques have brought
this species back from the brink of extinction and small groups have been
reintroduced in Mongolia. Group spacing behaviour is studied by focal
point sampling (nearest neighbour), and social interactions by
observations of social ‘allo’grooming, to help identify interactions and
affiliations between group members.
Vulture behaviour and population counts With all four species of
European vulture present in the Cévennes, students will join an
ornithologist in observing different parts of the colony to establish
population dynamics and size, time budgets and social interactions.
Wildlife Communities from the Mediterranean to the Alps
The second week of the expedition takes the group overland on a journey to
discover some of the spectacular National Parks and protected areas of
southern France and northern Italy. Seven days will be spent in these
spectacular areas of high biodiversity accompanied by a naturalist to help
identify some of the enigmatic European Mediterranean and alpine fauna and
flora. At each of the Parks the students will learn about the ecological
communities associated with the Park habitats, adaptations of species in the
Park and major management issues to consider when protecting these areas.
The first site will be in the Camargue which is formed from the delta of the
river Rhone, the longest river in France, and was recognised for its
international importance as a wetland reserve and designated a Ramsar site in
1986. The Camargue has large areas of brackish lagoons cut off from the sea
by sandbars and is home to one of only two European breeding populations of
Greater Flamingo. There is extensive halophytic grassland grazed by the
famous Camargue white horses, which are used by the Camargue cowboys to
round up the black bulls used in Camargue bullfighting.
From the Camargue the group will begin the climb up to higher altitudes with
the next visit being to the Vercors National Park, south of Grenoble which
varies in altitude from 1000m – 2300m. The Park has a variety of habitats
including oak and beech forests, grassland and alpine meadows in the
higher parts each with their own distinctive fauna. These include the Ibex,
Chamois, Mouflons, Ptarmigan and Wallcreeper of the highland areas with
deer, Wild Boar, Black Woodpecker, Black Grouse in the forested areas.
The next stop is the Gran Paradiso National Park in northern Italy and a day will
be spent travelling through the Alps and the Mont Blanc tunnel into Italy to
access this Park. The Gran Paradiso Park in the Italian Alps ranges in altitude
from 800m – 4000m and the highest areas are covered in glaciers with alpine
meadows lying below the glaciers. There are beech, larch, maple, lime and
spruce forests which have different associated faunas. Alpine Ibex can be seen
grazing on the alpine meadows along with Alpine Marmots and Chamois whilst
predators include Wolves, Lynx, Golden Eagles and Eagle Owls.
Throughout this expedition conservation actions such as the reintroduction of
the Bearded Vulture into the Vercors Park in 2010 and the Cevennes in 2012,
as part of the wildlife corridor programme linking the distant populations of
bearded vultures in the Alps and Pyrenees, will be described. Other examples
will include the reintroduction of Ibex and the spread of wolves.
Facilities
During the Cévennes National Park week, the group will be based at the
Eagles Nest Field Study Centre, 7km from the pretty village of Le Pont de
Montvert on the south side of Mont Lozere, the highest point in the Cevennes
National Park. Accommodation is in small dormitories, and the centre is
equipped with four classrooms/laboratories, a library, and areas where the
students can socialise and relax after work is completed.
During the Alpine and Mediterranean Discovery week, in order to visit several
protected areas in a cost effective way, transport is by coach, and
accommodation will be in tents on campsites.
Example research questions for IB extended essays, EPQ scheme and
field presentations (see www.opwall.com for full list of topics)
How can camera traps be used to monitor populations of genets in
Mediterranean woodland?
Why is dead wood indicative of overall forest ecosystem health?
How do forest management practises influence the distribution of birds on
Mont Lozere?
What are the practical applications of equine ethology in the conservation of
the Przewalski’s horse?
What are the vital characteristics of short-toed eagle habitat?
37
ORGANISING A SCHOOL EXPEDITION
School expeditions (students aged 16-18) need to be organised by teachers
from the school who will accompany the group in the field. There is one free
place (does not include flights, internal travel, park fees, dive learning
materials or dive hire) for a teacher for each group of 8 paying students or part
thereof. Thus if there is a group of 20 students interested then there will be 2
free teacher places and an additional teacher could join for 50% of the costs.
Please note in Canada where the whole expedition is packaged by Victor
Travel, the free teacher places are included in the package. The teachers’ role
is to ensure the groups get to the start and end points of the expeditions
safely. During expedition Opwall staff are responsible for the activities and
safety of the group. The teachers will join in with the research programmes
and are responsible only for pastoral (personal welfare) issues relating to their
group. Please note that school students cannot join the research expeditions
unless they are part of a team led by a teacher.
Groups take between 10 and 20 months to organise their expedition from
initial meeting to going into the field. As a teacher there are various stages to
organising an expedition which are described below:
Initial meeting
This is normally a 10 – 20 minute introductory meeting at school between
interested teachers and Opwall education staff, so that they can be introduced
to the research programmes, safety systems and educational benefits. If at the
end of this meeting the teachers are interested then a date and time are
arranged for an evening presentation to explain the programme to students
and their parents along with the interested staff members. There is no
commitment in arranging an evening presentation and if, at the end of the talk,
the decision is that a group will not be going from the school, then there are
no costs payable.
After this initial meeting, the teacher chooses their preferred expedition
destination and selects a favoured project with a possible back up country to
38
be given at the evening presentation. Opwall then forwards all the relevant
health and safety documentation regarding the preferred expeditions so the
process of approval can be started.
Evening presentation
This is shortly after (4 – 8 weeks) the initial meeting, once the preferred country
has been selected and the health and safety issues have been considered. The
presentation to students, parents and the interested teachers describes the
research objectives, facilities, timetable for the group and the learning objectives
for the school group of the proposed expedition. Some expedition weeks are very
popular so it is advisable for a school to hold places on particular expeditions
before their evening presentation and these places can be held for up to one
month after the presentation, with no financial commitment. If the held places
are not needed the school just cancels them and they are allocated to another
school waiting to hold places on that expedition.
Making a booking
From the date of the evening presentation the group have a month to secure
their place. If they are going then the lead organizer at the school completes
the booking form with the group names and dates of birth. All student group
members then pay a non refundable deposit for the preferred expedition dates.
Opwall then issues an invoice to the school with a schedule of agreed
installments with the final payment being made three months before
departure. Any teacher costs will be invoiced the April before the expedition
starts. Payments can be made via cheques or BACs transfer.
Fundraising meeting
If the group wants to fundraise for part or all of the expedition costs then
Opwall will arrange for a professional fundraiser to meet with the interested
students and parents as soon as possible after the evening presentation either
directly or via a remote meeting. The purpose of the meeting is for the
fundraiser to explain what activities, events and other fundraising ideas
schools can use to reach their fundraising target and the likely income from
each of these activities. The objective is for the group to develop a
fundraising plan with details of activities and events to be completed and the
estimated income from each. It is extremely beneficial if the parents can stay
involved with the fundraising.
Organising travel
Once the school is booked on then we have a Bookings Team based in
Opwall who will liaise with travel agents and obtain the best quotes for the
international flights for the school. We will be using Round the World Experts
RTWE (www.roundtheworldexperts.co.uk) as the preferred travel agency for
most countries except where we have specialist travel agencies (e.g. Victor
Travel for Canadian departures and Special Delivery Travel for Maltese
departures) or there are low cost airlines (e.g. Wizz Air for UK departures to
Transylvania). RTWE have numerous offices around the World and can
provide competitive prices for departures from most European countries, US,
China and Australia. Once the school is satisfied the best international flight
quote has been obtained then they can make the booking directly with the
travel agency in their country.
Round The World Experts Contact Details:
email: opwall@rtwexperts.co.uk
Tel: 0844 560 9973
International contact: +44(0)203 056 1130
If you are booking international flights departing from a country other than
the UK then please email RTWE and they will direct you to their counterpart
agency. For those booking flights from the US please email
usa@opwall.com and they will forward your requirements to a couple of
competing flight providers. The advantage of using this system of the school
booking their own international flights is that they can use the markets to get
the best price on flights. If unsure about who to contact email your loal
Opwall Office.
The in-country travel arrangements can be handled through the Opwall office
making it much simpler for the school to arrange their travel to and from the
start and finish points of the expedition. Once the group have their
international flights booked, the bookings team will organise the transfers to
and from the start and finish points of the expedition using the in-country
travel agents and NGO’s that have organised these transfers for the last few
years for Opwall expeditions. Payments for these internal transfer packages
must be made directly to Opwall Headquarters.
Canadian schools. The travel and expedition are packaged together through
Victor Travel (Tel: 1-866-699-0199 email opwall@cwtvictortravel.ca).
ATOL
All the flights and flight-inclusive packages prepared by the
Operation Wallacea bookings team are financially protected
by the ATOL scheme. When you pay you will be supplied
with an ATOL certificate. Please ask for it and check to
ensure that everything you booked (flights, hotels and other
services) is listed on it. Please see our booking conditions
for further information or for more information about our
financial protection and the ATOL certificate go to:
www.atol.org.uk/atolcertificate
Insurance
Opwall has insurance in place to provide medical and repatriation cover up
to £1million for all participants in the expedition. We do this through CoverMore who are a global insurance company covering in excess of a million
travellers every year. Detailed medical and evacuation plans are sent to
Cover-More’s medical emergency team in advance of the expeditions. If
there are any medical issues on the expeditions all plans have been agreed
in advance so there are no delays in providing any medical support that
might be needed. The medical and repatriation cover provided by Opwall
also covers travel to and from the site.
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39
In addition to this medical cover, please check the schools insurance cover for
participant also includes:
If any of the group have an existing medical condition that may be
exacerbated by the expedition and require additional medical treatment in
hospital other than that which is provided by the Opwall medical staff in the
field. In severe cases, which may even require evacuation, then the Opwall
medical and evacuation cover will not cover the costs of this additional
medical treatment and evacuation. For pre-existing medical conditions then
specialist insurance cover can be obtained from the Flight Centre Group.
The need to cancel the expedition and flights because of a death of a member
of the travel party, call for jury duty of one of the accompanying teachers,
or adverse weather conditions making it impossible for the group to reach
the departure point for the trip.
The costs of re-booking connecting flights, boat or overland transfers to the
start and from the finish points of the expedition in the event of delays
caused in connecting flights or overland transfers due to delayed flights,
ferries or buses because of mechanical breakdown of transport or adverse
weather conditions, strikes, industrial action, riot or civil commotion, bomb
scares, criminal or terrorist acts etc.
The loss of personal baggage, clothing or items such as cameras or
electronic items or the costs of having to buy replacement items
if baggage is delayed.
For UK schools, if the school policy does not include these items then a
policy which dovetails into the medical and evacuation insurance cover
already purchased for the group by Opwall can be obtained from the Flight
Centre Group. Alternatively you can contact them at opwall@rtwexperts.co.uk
(or call 0844 5609973). For residents of countries outside of the UK and
Ireland, please contact your Flight Centre Group consultant for details of
insurance that will be appropriate for your trip. The Canadian schools joining
the expeditions all the travel insurance elements described above are included
in the package provided by Victor Travel.
40
Information collection
In November/December before the expedition starts the teacher will need to
check that all the students have passports with more than six months left on
them before the return date of the expedition (if not they need to order
replacements immediately). It is also recommended that teachers and parents
check whether any students require a visa for travel. In addition, the teacher
will need to check that all students have the required vaccinations for their
country of visit. Each of the school group participants will be sent a password
so they can log into our on line database and enter their own personal details
(passport numbers, nationality, passport expiry, health issues, dietary issues
etc). If the group is diving the PADI forms (health, assumption of risks and
liability forms) will need to be completed by the students and signed by their
parents (and doctors if necessary). These forms will need to be collected
ahead of the expedition and copies sent to Opwall. The originals of the forms
are retained by the teacher and taken into the field with them.
Expedition preparation
A few months before your expedition Opwall will email the lead teacher for
each group, a link to a webpage that has a kit list video to help the students
take the right equipment, a webinar recorded PowerPoint presentation that
gives details of exactly what the students will be doing and the facilities at
each camp and links to various additional information pages on the Opwall
website. This email and the links can then be forwarded to all the group
participants so they and their parents can study it at their leisure. Once all
group members have been through this information, it is then a good idea to
organise an evening meeting with all the students and their parents so that
they can have a video conversation with the Opwall Country Manager for the
expedition to clarify any remaining issues.
Pre-expedition training
Life on expedition is often outside many students’ comfort zone and they can
take time adapting to the trials and rigours of expedition life. To help your
group hit the ground running when they arrive, we are working with Discover
Ltd. to run an expedition training week over the Easter holidays before your
expedition. Discover Ltd has been a leading provider of biology and
geography fieldwork since 1986, with field centres in both France and
Morocco. The pre-expedition training courses have been tailored to prepare
groups for their time in the field, as well as delivering some of the academic
content of their biology exam specification for IB, the different exam board A
and AS level biology exams and Scottish Highers. The training course is
based at the Eagles Nest Field Study Centre, in the Cevennes National Park,
southern France, a striking and remote rural upland landscape with high
biodiversity and is available for UK based students. During the week students
will become conversant with the vocabulary of ecology and learn about
energy flow, ecosystems, communities and populations and the techniques
used by biologists to investigate these in the field. This is invaluable training
whether or not your students are coming on the summer Opwall expedition.
There will also be a day spent trekking and overnighting in a tented camp to
help prepare and bond the teams joining the Opwall research teams. For
details please contact info@opwall.com
Costs
The cost of all the expeditions payable to Opwall is £1185 (UK and
Europe), US$1,900 (US, China, SE Asia), Can$1,900 (Canada),
Aus$1,900 (Australia). This cost covers all the transport around the
sites from the start and finish points of the expedition at all sites except
Madagascar, China and transfers to the Galapogos. The cost also covers
food, accommodation, training courses that form part of the schools
programmes (e.g. PADI Open Water dive training), diving or snorkelling,
participation in the various science projects, safety and medical cover and
medical and evacuation insurance cover.
In addition one teacher goes free for each group of 8 students.
The travel costs to and from the start and finish point of the expeditions
are not covered. Schools are free to shop around to get the best price for
international flights (except for Canadian schools where flights are packaged
with the expedition by Victor Travel). Once the international flights are
organised the Opwall bookings team will then organise the travel from arrival
in country to the start, and back from the finish, of the expeditions and this
will be charged separately to the school.
The international and in-country travel costs vary enormously depending in
which country the school is based and the distance/cost of travel once incountry. For some countries (e.g. Transylvania, Honduras, Mexico) the start
of the expeditions is not far from the international arrival point, whereas for
others (e.g. Madagascar, Ecuador/Galapagos) the travel is much more
extensive. When deciding which of the expeditions would be of most interest
please ask your local Opwall office for an estimate of the total costs
including international flights, visa, entrance fees etc. It is best to slightly
overestimate the total costs when the school decides on the total sum each
student will need to pay because of uncertainties over the costs of
international flights. Please note the reason that Opwall does NOT package
everything including flights is so that the school can take advantage of the
best prices for international flights which makes the total expedition costs
much lower than a packaged price.
INDONESIA
The start point of the expeditions is Labundo on Buton Island in SE
Sulawesi on Thursday at 0800hrs and the end point of the expedition is
Hoga Island in the Wakatobi Marine National Park on Wednesday at
0800hrs or Bau Bau on Buton Island on Wednesday at 0800hrs.
The groups need to be in Makassar (known as Ujung Pandang on airline
schedules) by the Tuesday evening before their expedition starts and can
organise their international flights from Makassar back home from the
Wednesday afternoon from 1800hrs onwards after their expedition finishes.
2015 EXPEDITION
NUMBER
START DATE IN
LABUNDO
FINISH DATE
IN HOGA OR BAU BAU
1
Thursday 11 June 2015
Wednesday 24 June 2015
2
Wednesday 01 July 2015
3
4
Thursday 02 July 2015
5
6
7
Wednesday 05 August 2015
8
In addition to the dates for the main season there are smaller survey teams on
site from Sunday 8 March to Saturday 25 April 2015 dates when school
groups can join the survey teams. Note the academic teams are smaller at this
time of year and you would need to contact your local Opwall office for a
detailed description of the research that would be undertaken.
41
HONDURAS
AMAZONIA (PERU)
Expeditions start in San Pedro Sula on Wednesday at 0700hrs and finish in La
Ceiba or Tela on Tuesday at 0800hrs. The groups need to be in San Pedro Sula
on the Tuesday before their expedition start and can arrange for flights from San
Pedro Sula from 1400hrs if finishing at Tela and from 1600hrs if finishing at Utila.
All expeditions start at Iquitos airport on a Sunday at 1200hrs and finish at
Iquitos airport on a Friday at 2000hrs. Groups need to arrive in Iquitos on
the Saturday before their expedition start date and to book their return flights
from the Saturday after their expedition.
2014 EXPEDITION
NUMBER
START DATE IN
SAN PEDRO SULA
FINISH DATE IN
LA CEIBA OR TELA
1
Tuesday 23 June 2015
2
3
Tuesday 07 July 2015
4
5
6
7
Tuesday 04 August 2015
8
2015 EXPEDITION
NUMBER
START DATE
IN IQUITOS
FINISH DATE
IN IQUITOS
1
Sunday 7 December 2014
Friday 19 December 2014
2
Sunday 25 January 2015
Friday 06 February 2015
3
Sunday 22 March 2015
Friday 03 April 2015
4
Sunday 05 April 2015
Friday 17 April 2015
High water surveys
Low water surveys
5
Sunday 14 June 2015
Friday 26 June 2015
SOUTH AFRICA
6
Sunday 28 June 2015
Friday 10 July 2015
The expeditions start on a Saturday at 0800hrs in Kruger National Park and
finish on a Friday at 0800hrs at Sodwana Bay. The groups will need to arrive in
Johannesburg on the Thursday afternoon or before 0830hrs on the Friday
morning before their start date. Flights back from Johannesburg can be arranged
from 2000hrs on the Friday of the expedition finish date.
7
Sunday 12 July 2015
Friday 24 July 2015
8
Sunday 26 July 2015
Friday 07 August 2015
2015 EXPEDITION
NUMBER
START DATE IN
KRUGER OR KZN RESERVE
FINISH DATE IN
SODWANA BAY
1
Saturday 13 June 2015
Friday 26 June 2015
2
Friday 03 July 2015
3
Friday 10 July 2015
4
Saturday 04 July 2015
Friday 17 July 2015
5
Friday 24 July 2015
6
Friday 31 July 2015
7
8
Saturday 01 August 2015
MAYAN FORESTS, YUCATAN (MEXICO)
The expeditions start on a Monday at 1300hrs at Calakmul Biosphere
Reserve in the Yucatan peninsular of Mexico and finish at Akumal on a
Sunday at 1200hrs. Groups need to arrive in Cancun by 1800hrs on the
Sunday before their expedition starts and to organise flights leaving Cancun
after 1800hrs on the Sunday of the last day of their expedition.
2014 EXPEDITION
NUMBER
START DATE
IN CALAKMUL
FINISH DATE
IN AKUMAL
1
Monday 15 June 2015
Sunday 28 June 2015
2
Monday 22 June 2015
Sunday 05 July 2015
3
Monday 29 June 2015
Sunday 12 July 2015
4
Monday 06 July 2015
Sunday 19 July 2015
MADAGASCAR
5
Monday 13 July 2015
Sunday 26 July 2015
The expedition starts on the Sunday at 1600hrs at Mariarano village and finishes
on the Saturday at 0800hrs at Nosy Be airport if doing the marine week or at San
Diego airport if doing the lemur and chameleon hunt option. Groups joining this
project need to arrive in Antananarivo on or before the Friday before their project
starts. Air Madagascar has exclusive use of the internal Madagascar routes and has a
habit of switching schedules at the last minute, so there is the option of going
overland. On this expedition the transfers between the forest and marine sites are so
distant that the group has to cover these transfer costs which are included in the
internal transfer cost quote to get to the start and back from the finish point of each
expedition. The group can fly back from Antananarivo on the Saturday evening.
6
Monday 20 July 2015
Sunday 02 August 2015
7
Monday 27 July 2015
8
Monday 03 August 2015
CUBA
The expeditions start on a Friday at 0800hrs at the Colony Hotel, Isla de la
Juventud, and finish on a Thursday at 0800hrs at the same location. Groups
need to arrive in Havana on the Wednesday before their expedition starts and
to arrange flights from Havana for the Friday after their expedition ends.
2014 EXPEDITION
NUMBER
START DATE
IN MARIARANO
FINISH DATE IN NOSY BE
OR ANTANANARIVO
1
Sunday 21 June 2015
2014 EXPEDITION
NUMBER
START DATE IN
ISLE OF YOUTH
FINISH DATE IN
ISLE OF YOUTH
2
Sunday 28 June 2015
1
Friday 12 June 2015
2
Friday 19 June 2015
Friday 26 June 2015
3
42
Sunday 05 July 2015
4
Sunday 12 July 2015
3
5
Sunday 19 July 2015
4
Friday 03 July 2015
6
Sunday 26 July 2015
5
Friday 10 July 2015
7
6
Friday 17 July 2015
PRICES AND DATES
TRANSYLVANIA (ROMANIA)
GUYANA
The expeditions start in Sighisoara at 1500hrs on a Wednesday and finish
at the same point on Tuesday at 1400hrs. The groups need to arrive at Tirgu
Mures by 1300hrs on the start date of the expedition and to arrange return
flights for the Wednesday after the expedition finishes.
The expeditions start on a Tuesday at 1500hrs at the Iwokrama Research Centre
and finish on a Monday at 0800hrs at Surama Village. Groups need to arrive in
Georgetown by the Monday evening before their expedition starts and to arrange
homeward flights from Georgetown on the Tuesday after the expedition finishes.
2015 EXPEDITION
NUMBER
START DATE
IN SIGHISOARA
FINISH DATE
IN SIGISHOARA
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
ECUADOR
The expeditions start on a Tuesday at 1800hrs at the Santa Lucia Cloud
Forest Reserve and finish on a Monday at 0900hrs at the Tesoro Escondido
Forest Reserve. The group need to arrive before midday in Quito on the
Tuesday of their expedition start date and organise flights back from Quito
leaving on the Tuesday after the expedition finishes.
2015 EXPEDITION
NUMBER
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
2015 EXPEDITION
NUMBER
EXPEDITION START DATE
IN IWOKRAMA
EXPEDITION FINISH DATE
IN SURAMA
1
2
3
4
Monday 29 June 2015
Monday 06 July 2015
Monday 13 July 2015
Monday 20 July 2015
CHINA
The expeditions start on a Tuesday at 1800hrs at the Beijing Forestry University
Research Centre at Qinghai Lake and finish on a Monday at 0900hrs at the
Changqing Reserve. The group need to arrive in Beijing on the Monday before
their expedition starts and are able to organise flights back from Beijing leaving
on the Tuesday after the expedition finishes. On this expedition the transfers
between the two sites are so distant that the group has to cover these transfer
costs, which will be included in the internal transfer costs quote to get to the start
and back from the finish point of each expedition.
2015 EXPEDITION
NUMBER
START DATE IN BEIJING
FORESTRY RESEARCH CENTRE
FINISH DATE IN
CHANGQING RESERVE
1
2
3
4
5
6
Monday 29 June 2015
Monday 06 July 2015
Monday 13 July 2015
Monday 20 July 2015
Monday 27 July 2015
START DATE IN SANTA LUCIA
FINISH DATE IN TESORO
CLOUD FOREST RESERVE ESCONDIDO FOREST RESERVE
Monday 22 June 2015
Monday 29 June 2015
Monday 06 July 2015
Monday 13 July 2015
Monday 20 July 2015
Monday 27 July 2015
DOMINICA
Expeditions start on Monday at 0800hrs at the Clemson research centre in
Dominica and finish at Fort Shirley in Dominica on Saturday at 0900hrs.
Groups will need to arrive on the Sunday in Dominica and stay overnight at
the research centre on the Sunday night. Flights home can be booked from
1100hrs on the Saturday.
2015 EXPEDITION
NUMBER
EXPEDITION START DATE IN
CLEMSON RESEARCH CENTRE
EXPEDITION FINISH DATE
IN FORT SHIRLEY
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
Monday 15 June 2015
Monday 22 June 2015
Monday 29 June 2015
Monday 06 July 2015
Monday 13 July 2015
Monday 20 July 2015
Monday 27 July 2015
GREECE
The expeditions start on a Thursday at 1200hrs at the Archipelagos Research
Centre near Pythagoria on Samos, and finish at the same location on a
Wednesday at 1100hrs. You should book international flights to Athens that
arrive at any point on the Wednesday before the start of your expedition, and
that leave either after 4pm on the final day of your expedition, or, if you want to
stay an extra day in Athens after you leave Samos you could book them leaving
Athens at any point on the Thursday after your expedition finishes.
2015 EXPEDITION
NUMBER
START DATE
ON SAMOS
FINISH DATE
ON SAMOS
1
2
3
4
Thursday 6 August 2015
FRANCE AND ITALY
The expeditions start at the Eagles Nest research centre in the Cevennes National
Park, France on a Saturday at 1200hrs and finish in the Gran Paradiso National
Park, Italy on a Friday at 0800hrs. Generally the cheapest route is to organise
international flights arriving in London on the Thursday before the expedition
starts and leaves from London on the Saturday evening after the project finishes.
A coach will be needed to take the group to the Cevennes National Park and back
from Italy at the end of your expedition.
2015 EXPEDITION
NUMBER
START DATE IN CEVENNES
NATIONAL PARK, FRANCE
FINISH DATE IN GRAN PARADISO
NATIONAL PARK, ITALY
1
2
3
4
Friday 24 July 2015
Friday 31 July 2015
43
OPWALL OFFICES:
UK HEAD OFFICE
Wallace House, Old Bolingbroke
Lincs PE23 4EX UNITED KINGDOM
e: info@opwall.com
t: +44 (0)1790 763194
US OFFICE
PO Box 3068, Staunton
VA 24401 USA
e: usa@opwall.com
t: +1 (973) 920-0487
CANADA OFFICE
PO BOX 43, Whitby, Ontario
L1N 5R7 CANADA
e: canada@opwall.com
t: +1 (905) 231-2095
AUSTRALIA OFFICE
PO Box 651, The Gap,
Queensland 4061 AUSTRALIA
e: australia@opwall.com
t: +61 (42) 0379 005
CHINA OFFICE
39 Landianchang, South Road,
Haidian District Beijing 100097,
CHINA
e: china@opwall.com
t: +86 10 8885 9088
SOUTH AFRICA OFFICE
976 Justice Mahomed, (262 Charles St),
Brooklyn, Pretoria 0181 SOUTH AFRICA
e: southafrica@opwall.com
t: +27 12 346 0272
SE ASIA OFFICE
Jalan Bintara No 7C, Bau-Bau,
Sulawesi Tenggara 93717,
INDONESIA
e: seasia@opwall.com
t: +62 (0)8124 572 4054
NORDIC OFFICE
Rymdvägen 4,
281 43 Hässleholm, SWEEDEN
e: nordic@opwall.com
t: +46 765 264 895
PARTNERS: We have a number of partners in each country but the principal ones for each country are listed below:
CENTRAL AMERICAN OFFICE
PO BOX 806,Tegucigalpa,
HONDURAS
e: central.america@opwall.com
t: +504 9990-6894 or
+504 2232-2436
MEXICO OFFICE
Calle 11, M.30, L.3,
Fraccionamento Villas Tulum
Tulum, Mexico 77780
e: mexico@opwall.com
t: +52 984 127 9521
As a member of the Association of Bonded Travel Organisers Trust Limited (ABTOT), Operation Wallacea has provided a Bond to
meet the requirements of the Package Travel, Package Holidays and Package Tours Regulations 1992. In the event of the Company’s
insolvency this Bond provides security for all non flight inclusive packages provided by Operation Wallacea. In the above
circumstances, the following will apply:
• a refund of your pre-payments if you have not yet travelled; or
• if you are already on expedition the transport costs back to the start point of the expedition and costs incurred in changing your
return tickets plus refund of the percentage of the expedition payment for the cancelled part of the expedition.
IMPORTANT NOTE: The details of the expedition programmes described in this brochure are correct at the time of going to print. However, note that you
will be joining a real scientific expedition and that on occasions the work carried out on individual projects will differ from that described in order to
respond to scientific priorities. Please keep checking our website www.opwall.com for the most up-to-date information about the expeditions.

Here - Operation Wallacea

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