CALL FOR UNDERGRADUATE SUMMER STUDENT RESEARCH ASSISTANTS AT BIODIVERSITY HOTSPOTS WORLDWIDE! 

Operation Wallacea (Opwall) is a network of academics from European and North American universities, who design and implement biodiversity, conservation management, and climate change research programs.

If you are enthusiastic and interested in wildlife conservation and climate change research, you can join Opwall’s 2024 or 2025 summer expeditions as a Research Assistant! Relatively few people have field experience working alongside real research projects and the Opwall research program offers the opportunity to work with wildlife conservation scientists in the field.

Opwall field surveys are divided into biodiversity research expeditions, biodiversity and climate change field training courses, and wildlife and culture experiences. These expeditions involve clusters of scientists and field biologists running a series of wildlife research projects at biodiversity hotspots and publishing their results.

Opwall is recruiting undergraduate students to participate in our 2 to 6-week summer research expeditions at biodiversity hotspots worldwide, including the following destinations: 

South Africa: Savannah Research and SCUBA Diving in the Indian Ocean 

Perform research in one of the most endangered biodiversity hotspots in the world! Conduct research on African lion, African elephant, Cape buffalo, African leopard, and rhinoceros in Gondwana or Somkhanda! Complete an African wildlife conservation and management course. Also, perform bird point counts and assist with vehicle-based large mammal distribution surveys throughout the reserve. Be involved in analyzing camera trap data for elusive species such as lions and hyenas. Additional option to complete an Introduction to Applied Conservation GIS course available to contribute to Opwall’s long-term biodiversity data collection!

Afterward, SCUBA dive at the UNESCO World Heritage site, iSimangaliso Wetland Park. At our Sodwana Bay Diving Centre and complete a PADI Open Water diving training course or an Indian Ocean reef ecology course with practicals by SCUBA diving or snorkeling.

Watch our South Africa Expedition Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KQDy-37RLeQ

Information on our South Africa Expedition: https://www.opwall.com/location/south-africa/

Honduras: Tropical Rainforest Research and SCUBA Diving in the Caribbean Sea 

Begin your expedition in the spectacular cloud forests of Cusuco National Park, which is ranked in the top 50 most irreplaceable biodiversity sites in the world! Learn about the ecology of the cloud forests and their conservation importance alongside a large team of scientists focusing on forest structure and carbon storage capacity, butterfly trapping, amphibian, and reptile transect surveys, bird point count and mist net surveys, fungi surveying, large mammal surveys from camera trapping and bat surveys from mist-netting and sound scaping!

Afterward, complete your expedition at either the Tela Marine Research Centre or on Utila Island where your focus will be on Caribbean coral reef ecology and conservation. You will have the opportunity to complete a PADI Open Water dive training course if you would like to learn and aren’t already qualified, as well as a compulsory Caribbean reef ecology and marine survey techniques course with practicals done by SCUBA diving or snorkeling. These are Opwall’s largest marine research sites and are home to our pioneering efforts to integrate technological solutions into the monitoring and study of coral reefs, including our 3D computer modeling method, use of robots to survey reefs beyond the limits of SCUBA diving, and stereo-video fish surveys to estimate biomass.

Watch our Honduras Expedition Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R5K9hdOdr80

Information on our Honduras Expedition: https://www.opwall.com/location/honduras/

Mexico: Tropical Rainforest Research and SCUBA Diving in the Caribbean Sea 

Complete research at a series of tropical rainforest camps across the Calakmul Biosphere Reserve, learn about the Ancient Maya and Mayan Jungle ecology alongside practicals in biodiversity survey techniques and help scientists conduct research on a series of key wildlife species. Learn how to conduct real-world research on bats, birds, primates, large mammals, reptiles, amphibians, butterflies, forest structures, jaguars, and ungulates! 

Afterward, attend our marine research site in Akumal, which is part of the Mexican Caribbean Biosphere Reserve. If you are not already dive trained, you can spend your first week at this center completing a PADI Open Water dive training course, before moving on to the Caribbean reef ecology course in your next week. This course consists of lectures, and morning and afternoon in-water practicals, and trains you in some of the survey techniques used in the marine environment to assess the status of reefs and their associated fish communities. If you are already dive-trained or just want to snorkel your first week is on the Caribbean reef ecology course and the second would be spent working with different researchers on-site. Projects you will join include monitoring sea turtle abundance, sea turtle grazing of seagrasses, and seagrass biomass in Akumal Bay.

Watch our Mexico Expedition Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T4kFL5eb10M

Information on our Mexico Expedition: https://www.opwall.com/location/mexico/

WHY JOIN? 

• Get involved with active research projects – over 600 papers published to date 
• Expeditions to some of the most remote and stunning places worldwide 
• A focus on environmental education and conservation 
• No prior experience or knowledge is needed – just an interest in the world around you 

KEY BENEFITS! 

• Build your résumé 
• Gain experience in field research 
• Training in SCUBA, survey techniques, and jungle skills 
• Huge range of projects 
• Contribute to active research and conservation 

OPERATION WALLACEA DATES & FEES

Expedition Dates & Fees: https://www.opwall.com/undergraduate-research-assistant/university-expedition-dates/

Operation Wallacea Fee Includes: 

• All travel from the designated start point of the expedition (as described in the brochure and on the website), between the various sites on the expedition (with the exception of Madagascar, Ecuador and the Galapagos, and South Africa), and to the designated end point of the expedition
• Food and accommodation on your expedition
• Participation in all the field research projects and training courses on-site (excluding canopy access and dive training beyond PADI Open Water level) 
• Where the described program includes SCUBA diving or snorkeling, the booking includes diving or snorkeling, dive training to PADI Open Water level, and marine equipment needed (excluding a wetsuit)
• Medical and safety support, and full operational support during the expedition.

FURTHER INFORMATION: 

Please contact Operation Wallacea’s representative Nathan Adams (nathan.adams@opwall.com) to discuss your options to join us in the summers of 2024 or 2025!