News - Field Trip Praised
University of Exeter press release
Biology students from the University of Exeter's Tremough Campus have praised their department for organising a two-week field trip to South Africa in a matter of days. The 60 students and 8 staff were originally due to tour the national parks of Kenya, but had to cancel their plans because of the political situation in the country. After spending several months planning the Kenya trip, staff worked around the clock to organise a two-week tour of the cape region of South Africa.
The group toured some of South Africa's wildlife hotspots including De Hoop, Salmonsdam, Grootvaderbosch, Cederberg and Limietberg. The purpose of the trip, as it had been for the intended visit to Kenya, was to see a variety of plants and animals in their natural habitats and to witness conservation in an African country.
Third year BSc Conservation Biology and Ecology student Iain Stott, who is originally from East Devon, said: "The logistics of organising a trip for 70 people are complicated to say the least and I was almost expecting the alternative to be a series of day trips around Cornwall! When we were told that we were going to South Africa I was seriously impressed - the amount of work that must have gone on behind the scenes to make that possible is phenomenal. Being able to do field study in such a unique and beautiful environment reaffirmed for many of us just why we are studying what we are." After graduating this summer, Iain hopes to stay in Cornwall to study for a PhD with the University of Exeter.
Staff and students cannot agree on one highlight of the trip, but for many having the rare opportunity to see great white sharks and southern right whales near Dyer Island will be the most memorable. They observed many of South Africa's most impressive animals including rare cape zebras, baboons, sugar birds, fur seals and South African penguins. They also saw a huge range of plants, including South Africa's iconic proteas.
Third year BSc Conservation Biology and Ecology student Katie Spence, who moved to Cornwall from North Wales for her course, said: "South Africa is an amazing place for anyone who is interested in wildlife. I learned a huge amount as you get a much better understanding from seeing something first-hand than you do from reading a book. As a bird-lover my highlight was seeing thousands of cormorants filling the sky - I'd never imagined seeing so many in one place."
In temperatures of up to 40 degrees, students worked on several group projects, including dragon fly and frog surveys, a study of penguin behaviour and trying to work out how many antelope live in the Cape Nature Reserve. One day involved climbing Table Mountain, though some resorted to ascending by cable car. The group stayed in several campsites during the trip and students took turns to cook meals for the rest of the group, though one lecturer made himself popular by getting take-away pizzas for everyone for the last night.
University of Exeter Senior Lecturer in Conservation Biology, Stuart Bearhop said: "This field trip, which is available to all third year and MSc biology students is a real highlight of the course. So, after realising we had to cancel our plans for Kenya, we were determined to come up with an equally exciting alternative. Some of my colleagues made use of their scientific contacts in South Africa, which was invaluable in getting us access to some of the most important reserves and parks. Considering it was put together in just a few days, the trip went incredibly smoothly. The success is really down to the students who were fantastic."
The trip was such a success that the University of Exeter is now considering permanently changing its annual field trip to be a visit to South Africa.
The £100 million Tremough campus is a Combined Universities in Cornwall initiative -of which the University of Exeter and University College Falmouth are two of the founding partners. It is funded mainly by the European Union (Objective One), the South West Regional Development Agency, and the Higher Education Funding Council for England, with support from Cornwall County Council. Set in 70 acres of countryside, but close to the waterside towns of Penryn and Falmouth, the campus offers a lively student community. The University of Exeter now offers degrees in Biology, Modern Celtic and Cornish Studies, English, Geology, Geography, History, Law, Mining Engineering, Politics and Renewable Energy on its Tremough Campus, which has expanded rapidly as part of the Combined Universities in Cornwall initiative.