Blog

You probably already know about Deep Blue without realizing it. To put it simply, Deep Blue is a shark. A big shark. Thanks to her size, she has become famous the world over and brings awareness to the misconceptions about sharks, and their threatened and endangered lifestyles. But before I start on why Deep Blue is so important, I’ll start by giving you some more information about who Deep Blue is and what we know Read more…

A Manchester lad, Mike Barron, is busy conducting research projects and leading citizen science expeditions to help conserve Cape Town’s seas. Cape RADD (Research and Diver Development) is a one of those new companies in our economy that is radically working to support ocean conservation efforts. Their focus lies within two main pillars: the marine science scuba field course and citizen science projects. The field course equips new emerging marine biologists or professional scuba divers to Read more…

Abstract Field courses provide excellent opportunities to engage students with their subject. Previous research has confirmed the considerable academic and pastoral benefits gained from taking students out of the classroom, especially in Biosciences and related disciplines. Here, we compare student attendance/attainment on a Level 5 Biosciences field course to South Africa to: (1) attainment on other Level 5 modules; (2) attainment at Level 6; (3) dissertation performance; and (4) grade trajectory between Level 5 and Read more…

So, you’ve been accepted into University onto the marine science course you wanted, or perhaps you’ve just graduated, Great! This is a fantastic step towards your future as a professional biologist. However, this is not the only step you can take to make sure you are building the strongest foundations for your chosen career path. Field courses provide excellent opportunities to engage students with their subject. At University you learn a theoretical baseline of knowledge Read more…

This is an exciting ‘citizen science’ initiative which encourages as many people as possible to get out into the wilderness of the Western Cape observing and collecting species data for science! So how can YOU get involved and what do you need to know? Well first, it might be useful to have a basic understanding of some biological terms and information for the complete beginner. So here is some… What is a BIOBLITZ and why Read more…

As a marine field biologist or dive professional you may be involved in dive expeditions and tasks which will involve working in very sensitive ecosystems and operating scientific equipment or collecting data in a controlled manor to complete your dive objectives. You will often need to be able to cruise very close to the reef to observe or photograph the smaller critters and details on the reef or sand getting up close and personal with Read more…