Insight into a marine conservation placement

COUNTRY: Mozambique
PROGRAM: GapBreak
PROJECT: Marine Conservation & Care Work
WRITTEN BY: Lottie Mellowes

Another two weeks has flown by here in Tofo, it's crazy to think we've been living in here for a month already. It's safe to say we are well and truly settled into our relaxed, beachside lifestyles.

Week three brought beautiful weather and lots of marine life. On one particular ocean safari some of us were lucky enough to swim amongst a huge pod of dolphins. There were upwards of forty dolphins jumping in and out of the water- certainly a highlight of the week. On the same ocean safari we were given permission to swim with a mother humpback whale and her calf. Usually, humans are not allowed to swim with humpback whales due to their sheer size and volume however these individuals were particularly calm and didn't mind the boat being near them. We were able to get good photo ID shots of the whales as well as observe their movements under the water.

Our social projects are continuing and we are already noticing progress in English skills in students and the teachers we work with. The teachers mainly speak the local language and Portuguese, so we have been working closely to develop their English skills so that they can teach the children in the long term. As much as we'd like to stay here forever, we will have to leave eventually! We also helped teach swimming lessons to students from the local school. Given that Tofo and its surrounds are coastal, it's so vital that everyone learns to swim, especially given that the local economy is based on fishing and tourism. It's hilarious watching the kids splash and play in the water, but very rewarding to see the them pick up what we're teaching them.

Week four was a busy week in Tofo as the group from Swaziland was visiting on the public holiday weekend. We spent the time doing an awesome quad bike tour of the areas around Tofo, driving through some of the surrounding villages with an awesome local guide.

This week we had a humpback whale specialist from the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) stay with us. We led our own purely research-based ocean safari and we got lots of data from various whales. We also saw an almost 2m leatherback turtle which was so exciting as they are quite rare here in Tofo.

Ciao for now!