Research Achievements

A recent study into the stomach contents of the Crocodiles of the Zambezi, led by Earthwatch scientists, has discovered a local variation in diet between populations, meaning they target different prey species in different areas... This highlights the importance of dietary studies in the compilation of management plans. The scientists have also investigated the blood biochemistry of the crocodiles, which will be useful information to inform diagnostic investigations in both zoo and farmed individuals, while a study into their genetic biology (loci and mitochondrial DNA sequences) has shed light on historical processes that may have been responsible for the current geographical distribution of individuals. The results suggest that the populations of crocodiles in the Okavango Delta and neighboring rivers represent the remaining vestiges of a much larger population.

During November 2008, the Walking with African Wildlife team held the annual Animal Population Control meeting in Hluhluwe... The aim of this meeting was to debate population estimates, and assess population trends in order to determine which species need particular attention for conservation. Park managers were very impressed with the quality and quantity of data collected by Earthwatch volunteers, which indicated a fall in numbers of two species of antelope, the kudu and waterbuck. This has prompted a study to determine the possible reasons for this decline.

Our Dolphins and Whales of Abaco Island project has contributed marine mammal and sea turtle sightings data towards the United States Navy’s Marine Resources Assessment project... These data will be used by the US Navy’s Fleet Forces Command to help mitigate naval activities in The Bahamas operating areas. Internationally, the research represents the only long-term study of marine mammal fauna in the wider Caribbean region. The researchers’ data is also employed in the Agreement for Specially Protected Areas and Wildlife (SPAW agreement, within the United Nations Cartagena Convention), which aims to improve the management of national protected areas and species in the region.

Data provided by Earthwatch volunteers on our Macaws of the Peruvian Amazon project are furthering scientific understanding of nest attendance, reproductive success, chick growth and nest types, and will contribute to an insight into psittacines (parrots) in general... The teams have also helped to take the first video data on the nesting habits of scarlet macaws at the Tambopata Research Centre. The footage will be used to document the interactions between siblings in order to understand how sibling rivalry and parental decisions affect chick starvation.

Research carried out on the critically endangered Kittlitz’s murrelet, a seabird of the alcidae family (which includes puffins and guillemots,) in Prince William Sound, Alaska, will help conservationists understand its habitat requirements... Found only in a few areas in Alaska and Siberia, the decline in the species’ population is thought to be closely linked to the massive glacial recession underway in northern latitudes due to climate change.

Data from a long-term monitoring programme as part of the Australia's Forest Marsupials project is being used to calculate population viability models, and has been used in the preparation of a management and recovery plan for Leadbeater's possum... Additionally, data from the Variable Retention Harvesting Experiment (Cutting Experiment), whereby patches of retained forest are surveyed for birds, reptiles, small mammals, and arboreal marsupials before and after harvesting, will be used to assess the efficacy of alternative harvesting systems, improving co-operation between research and forestry operations.

Fieldwork on the Earthwatch project Fiji’s Ancient Seafarers has uncovered the major discovery of a pottery ‘jewellery box’ hailing back to the Lapita people who populated the region from around 1100 - 550 BC... It was identified as a deliberate burial, and the pot contained nine shell rings, five bracelet-like items and five drilled shell pieces that may well have formed a necklace. Nothing like this has ever been found before in a Lapita site. The abundance of this shell jewellery discovery suggests that (at one point in its 500-year history) Bourewa island (part of the Fiji archipelago) was a manufacturing centre for shell jewellery. Landowners have agreed to protect the location, making it the only Lapita site to be preserved in this way.

In 2008, volunteers on the Samburu Communities and Wildlife project contributed to 219 interviews with 76 traditional medical practitioners... The result was 58 plants species subsequently identified as being used for the treatment of various illnesses in different communities in Laikipia and Samburu regions of northern Kenya. When plant samples were extracted and tested against micro-organisms known to cause these diseases, many of the plants were indeed found to be effective. They were potentially useful in killing the bacteria relating to the organisms causing malaria, typhoid, wound infection and even the one causing cystic fibrosis.

Researchers working for Earthwatch in Japan, supported by Earthwatch Japan, are making cooperative conservation actions for endangered butterflies, with the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport Japan and Japan’s Self-Defense Force... A notable inclusion is the Reverdin’s blue, listed as a category II extinction risk ("vulnerable") in the Japanese Red Data Book of threatened species,. The Reverdin's Blue lives in some parts of Kanto and Chubu Regions of Japan. Unfortunately its habitat is shrinking year by year and there are many areas where the species is already believed to be extinct.

Researchers on the Crocodiles of the Zambezi expedition have recently been asked on two separate occasions to remove crocodiles from a community fish farm, and the successful relocation of these animals has demonstrated to villagers that crocodiles do not have to be killed outright... Commonly the creatures have been persecuted due to the villagers’ fear of them. The team also contributed to two television documentaries in 2008.

With the help of Earthwatch volunteers, the Madonna della Tosse fountain in Tuscany has recently enjoyed a restoration, marking a very important step for conservation of the fountains in the area, which used to be provided in each town for the people who travelled through... The recovery was completed in just three months as part of our Fountains and Tabernacles of Tuscany expedition, and has become a symbol of a renaissance of interest and pride for the local cultural heritage.

On the Lions of Tsavo project in Kenya, Earthwatch-collected information has helped the Born Free Foundation submit a proposal for additional ranger teams who will de-snare and patrol all of the ranches between the Taita-Rukinga sanctuary and Tsavo West National Park in response to widespread poaching. The protection of this keystone species will indirectly offer protection for many other wildlife species.

Volunteers on the Lemurs and Forests of Madagascar project have recorded that the lemurs (varecia v. variegate) feed on a plant species not yet included in the list of food eaten by the animals. This discovery of a more diverse food source has led to a better understanding of the feeding ecology of the species, and will help to ensure an effective habitat for the lemurs.

The flora and fauna surrounding Poás volcano in Costa Rica may be useful in providing an effective indication of its activity, reports Dr. Hazel Rymer, lead scientist on Earthwatch’s Volcano expedition... Over the years, scientists including Dr. Rymer have observed and measured cycles of increases and decreases in the gravity above Poás. These gravitational distortions, usually associated with magma movements, make it possible to predict future volcanic activity. Currently there is a gravity build-up resembling one monitored in the 1980s, which resulted in an environmental crisis at Poás in the 1990s when the park was closed because of dangerous sulphurous gas emissions.
Dr. Rymer is also looking for small genetic changes in the plant life around Poás, similar to those that occur as a result of traffic pollution. These changes could provide a cheap, efficient and environmentally-friendly way of monitoring the volcano’s activity.
The team are investigating the processes that control volatile flux from magma and quantifying the long-term environmental and ecological effects in order to gain a better understanding of the hazards posed by gas emissions which will allow for more effective mitigation procedures to be adopted, including the cultivation of acid tolerant crops to neutralise soil, the evacuation of livestock and advice on the full evacuation or time-limited exposure for the human population as necessary.

Earthwatch scientists working on our Wildlife of the Mongolian Steppe project are conducting ground-breaking research into numerous little-studied species... We are gathering vital new knowledge on animals such as the globally threatened cinereous vulture. Our efforts have led directly to the Ikh Nart Reserve’s designation as an Important Bird Area in Mongolia, and the federal government is now considering upgrading the status from Nature Reserve to a National Park.

The Northwest Parks and Tourism Board in South Africa are continuing to support the work of our South Africa’s Brown Hyaenas project and several parks have approached the research team to expand their surveys to provide more information on this mammal for conservation action. It is hoped this research on the species’ genetics will inform the team of the viability of populations inside protected areas and what action is needed in maintaining this viability to ensure their survival.

Earthwatch is working to restore and manage mangrove plantations and explore the capacity of different mangrove species to store carbon, which could help mitigate the effects of climate change... The new plots are already producing wild seedlings, indicating that the project should result in self-sustaining, valuable woodland providing key habitat and shore protection in areas that have been barren for over 30 years. Mark Huxham, the Earthwatch scientist leading the Tidal Forests of Kenya project confirms there has been an 87 per cent survival rate of the trees at the site, and his conservative estimates predict 180 tons of carbon will be absorbed over the 25 year forest growth. Because mangrove forests collect peat, they will continue to act as carbon sinks for many years to follow. We are involved with the local community to ensure the plantations can be sustainably managed in the long term.

As a result of research supported by Earthwatch volunteers in our Dolphins of Greece project, an international cooperative for marine biodiversity (ACCOBAMS) has recently recommended that the Amvrakikos Gulf be considered a candidate Marine Protected Area, specifically to protect bottlenose dolphins.

Earthwatch Australia wins Environment Award

Support of David Lindenmayer’s Forest Marsupials project recognised.

After a six-year campaign, conservationists are celebrating the designation of the Bahia de los Angeles in Baja, Mexico, as a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve... Hundreds of Earthwatch volunteers contributed to this success by helping gather data during the Tracking Baja's Black Sea Turtles expeditions. The bay is home to numerous marine species as well as birds and other coastal wildlife. This new protected status for the area may also help the critically endangered vaquita, (the world's smallest and most endangered cetacean), a shy porpoise found only in the northern part of the Gulf of California and believed to be close to extinction.

Earthwatch scientists and volunteers have developed a comprehensive new Geographic Information Systems (GIS) database that will help local communities in the Samburu region of Kenya gain sustainable access to improved water supplies... Compiled over several years, the maps detail permanent and temporary water sources and will help reduce the outbreak of serious diseases such as cholera by avoiding the use of contaminated water supplies.

Data collected on the Hawksbill Turtles of Barbados project suggest that the number of nests of the critically endangered hawksbill turtle in Barbados have increased significantly as a result of efforts by Earthwatch and other conservation organisations... Recent findings suggest that Barbados is now the second largest rookery of hawksbills in the wider Caribbean.

Earthwatch volunteers working in the North Queensland Wet Tropics UNESCO World Heritage Site have provided a staggering 46,987 individual records of vertebrates, including numerous species of mammals, birds, reptiles and frogs... Teams also collected an additional 100,000 insect records, which will almost certainly contain a number of species new to science. These data were collected by multiple teams as part of the Climate Change in the Rainforest Earthwatch expedition and have already been used in various publications, including a report that provides the most detailed distribution maps and ecological information to date on these species in northern Australia.

The Pantanal in Brazil is the world's largest freshwater wetland, protected by UNESCO World Heritage status, and home to various species of peccary and feral pig... Recent studies have shown that their role as fruit eaters and dispersers affects the biodiversity of certain forest habitats. Earthwatch volunteers working on Conserving the Pantanal have sampled a total of 233 white-lipped peccaries, the largest survey of its kind for this species. These efforts have yielded valuable information regarding individual mammal's age, weight, diet and other biometric parameters, which will help researchers and scientists to develop a conservation plan for these mammals in the Pantanal.

In September 2005, Earthwatch teams enabled Lake Elmenteita to be designated a RAMSAR wetland of international importance. The lake currently supports more than one per cent of the global population of lesser flamingos and more than 20,000 water birds, as well as providing a habitat for locally threatened species.

Through extensive dialogue with oil companies, the Spanish navy, the European Union and Spanish fishermen, scientists from Earthwatch's Spanish Dolphins project secured agreement from the International Maritime Organisation to divert shipping lanes off the southern coast of Spain from the start of 2007. This monumental agreement has safeguarded crucial foraging grounds for common and bottlenose dolphins.

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