How to inspire marine research: take students to sea
OCEAN stewards from all over South Africa are back in action on a research expedition on board research vessel Angra Pequena, off the KwaZuluNatal Coast, making new discoveries.
Wrapped up warmly, sitting on the deck of the boat at a dockside on the Bluff, I wait for good weather to start my next offshore adventure.
This is my second time on an expedition that is part of the Ocean Stewards initiative. The initiative was launched last year with the support of The Blue Fund, a partnership between Grindrod Ltd and the Wildlands Conservation Trust.
The Ocean Stewards programme is designed to give marine science students a real feel for ocean research.
We are led by top marine scientists from around the country, identifying unique ocean eco-systems for inclusion in an expanded network of Marine Protected Areas (MPA).
We hope to increase interest in life in the ocean and the great need for its conservation. The oceans form an integral part of our lives, with many of the benefits to society unknown to those who receive them.
Most people are also unaware of the threats which our oceans face, and fewer and fewer students are choosing marine science and conservation as a career path.
On last year’s expedition I learned new field skills, like deploying a Bruv (baited remote underwater video) and seeing how the ROV (remote underwater vehicle) operates, capturing life in the ocean in high-definition, including crea- tures never seen before.
Now I am ready for more. I’ve packed my camera and binoculars in my bag in the hope that I’ll be able to snap pictures of humpback whales.
At this time of year these majestic creatures are also on a journey along our coastline, from their polar feeding grounds towards their warmer, tropical breeding grounds.
These snapshots will be added to a database that I will use to establish a photo identification catalogue of humpback whales on the east coast of South Africa.
My hope is that this will lead to a much needed national catalogue for the entire South African coastline which we will make accessible on an website, enabling the public to also upload photographs of whale sightings.
This will increase awareness and interest in humpback whales in the western Indian Ocean, and hopefully spark tourism activities that will raise funds for protecting these beautiful creatures.
Personally, I dream of swimming with whales. Could you imagine a world where this isn’t even an option? I don’t want to.
These stories form part of Roving Reporters environmental journalism training programme, in association with the Wilderness Leadership School, The Wildlands Conservation Trust and the Human Elephant Foundation.