I have been given the once in a lifetime opportunity to travel to Peru on a 4 week expedition in June 2021 to carry out important research to help conserve the high biodiversity and ecosystem of the peruvian rainforests. I am very passionate about conservation and therefore this expedition is an amazing opportunity for me. I am asking for funding to cover the costs of the programme, this money goes towards accommodation, travel and food while I am there, but also goes towards the researchers and their specialist equipment which will allow us to carry out this research. Every donation will go a long way, and will mean a lot, and I am very grateful to anyone who is able to donate.
Please help by donating if you can, or by sharing this page.
The research team are based on a historic research ship moored in the Yarapa river and also operate from a field camp in an indigenous village on the Tahuayo river. The first week will be spent learning about the wildlife and survey methods. I will then be involved a series of research projects including boat-based surveys of pink and grey dolphin populations, gillnet and rod surveys of the fish communities and point counts of the macaws and wading birds. As water levels drop over the season, the ecology of the flooded forests changes and water birds migrate to the area. I will also be involved in foot-based surveys of the flooded forests and transitional forests including forest structure surveys, mist net surveys of the understorey birds, butterfly surveys, terrestrial frog surveys, camera trap points for big cats, tapirs, peccary and other terrestrial mammals, and distance sampling for primate species and other arboreal mammals. As the sunsets there is then the opportunity for fishing bat, amphibian and caiman surveys. This research all goes towards larger studies to highlight the biological importance of this area and show governments and organisations this area of the Amazon rainforest is worth investing in and protecting.
Link to a youtube video with some more details about the expedition, from Operation Wallacea: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6XI8Cb8rcrg
Covid: This trip is planned for June 2021. If it is not safe to travel, then the trip will be postponed till 2022.
If you have any questions or would like some updates during and after the expedition, feel free to email me at: ajb733@york.ac.uk
