Special Report written by Adrelia, our marine biologist intern
Being a part of the Marine Savers team in the Maldives is more than just swimming with the fishes and being surrounded by beautiful reefs! A major role here at Landaa Giraavaru’s Marine Discovery Centre is spreading awareness to the public about the importance of preserving the immense yet finite Maldivian marine biodiversity. I spent my first week learning from Frédéric Ducarme, visiting marine researcher who has been creating an illustrated Wikipedia inventory of the diverse marine life of the whole Baa Atoll UNESCO Biosphere Reserve. This was a great start to my internship, as I was introduced to the art of taxonomy and learnt how to recognise the different species of marine life. Due to the wide inventory, a helpful tip from Fred was to take note of unique characteristics and adopt favourites in order to remember the name of the species. The Maldivian coral reefs form the heart of the country. Unfortunately, increasing development can damage the fragile reefs, and rising ocean temperatures cause coral bleaching. The Reefscapers coral frame propagation project was established to safeguard and enhance the coral reefs around the resort. As part of our guest sponsorship programme, I have been assisting Alexia in collecting coral fragments and attaching them to frames. We continually monitor coral growth by photographing each frame on a central database, and carry out re-transplantation when necessary (replacing dead corals on existing frames).
Maldivian Clownfish
Most marine research happens in the Fish Lab, where the clown fish breeding programme resides. The Blackfoot anemonefish (Amphiprion nigripes) and Clark’s anemonefish (Amphiprion clarkii) species are bred under controlled conditions and regularly cared for by Aku and Ammaday, our resident fish biologists. The main diet of the clown fishes is zooplankton (Rotifers, Copepods and Artemia) which are produced here in the Fish Lab and represent our live food stock. The objective of this program is to create a captive cultivation technique for the expanding ornamental fish trade. This way, the marine life in the wild is preserved and an alternate source of income is provided to local communities by adopting this new skill. I was lucky enough to witness the egg spawning and hatching process of a breeding pair of Maldivian Blackfoot clownfish.
Volunteering with Maldivian Sea Turtles
I also get to assist Sarah on guided Snorkel Adventures around nearby islands. This gives me a chance to take ID pictures of wild sea turtles as part of the national Maldives turtle ID monitoring programme. Each individual has a unique pattern of scales on the side of their face, just like human fingerprints. Using a special computer programme, we generate a unique code for each scale pattern for identification purposes. We have now identified more than 1,000 turtle individuals around the Maldives, and can study their population, distribution, migration and feeding behaviours.
Raising Environmental Awareness in Schools
A very enjoyable part of my job is being involved in spreading awareness to the public, to promote better understanding and appreciation for the marine ecosystem. We recently organised a school excursion from the local island of Maalhos, in which we educate the students from grade 3 & 4 about environmental conservation. We also gave them a tour around the Marine Discovery Centre and built a coral frame with them. Seeing these enthusiastic children learning about the environment brings me joy and hope. My time here so far has certainly been an amazing experience! During my remaining weeks, I hope to learn even more from the wonderful Marine Savers team, and play a part in saving and conserving the marine biodiversity of Maldives! A big thank you to Adrelia Teo, who worked with us from September to November 2014.
Do you want to experience life as a marine biologist
here in the Maldives ?
Head over to our Employment page to read about the different ways you can work with us - full time, apprentice or intern.
And see more from our Interns in their very own words & photos as part of our Diary / Blog series.