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Our Research Manager, Karen Bowles, was recently interviewed by the American International School of Mozambique (AISM) in the light of World Oceans Day last month. Aimed at the students aged 5-18 years old, Karen speaks about the BCSS Ocean Observatory, gathering data through fieldwork, our relationship with the ocean and providing data to scientists and […]

This article is written by Iris Uijttewaal, with contributive information provided by Katya Kalashnikova. July marks the start of humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae) season in the Bazaruto Archipelago, with two individuals already observed off Benguerra Island. As a cosmopolitan species, humpbacks travel thousands of miles, covering all oceans and undertake extensive annual migrations from high-latitude

For several months, marine research interns Camille Roques and Sara Vital have contributed greatly to the scientific work at our research station and Ocean Observatory on Benguerra Island. Their hands-on approach included the co-writing of our coral reef, benthic habitats and pelagic megafauna monitoring survey methodology. They developed protocols for the surveys focusing on coral,

Last week, Frontiers in Marine Science published a paper led by BCSS’s Chief Scientist Dr. Mario Lebrato alongside an international team of scientists. The paper, “Gelatinous Carbon Impacts Benthic Megafaunal Communities in a Continental Margin”, outlines how sinking ocean plankton (e.g. jellyfish) transport carbon (jelly-C) to the deep ocean impacting benthic animals (e.g. invertebrates and

Women have made great contributions to the world of science; whether it’s  unraveling the structure of DNA, producing the first map of the ocean floor or calculating mankind’s trajectory to the moon. Yet, women still account for less than 30% of careers in science, technology, engineering and mathematics. In the light of International Women’s Day,

The 2021 United Nations Climate Change Conference brought international parties and world leaders together to accelerate action towards the Sustainable Development Goals of the Paris Agreement and the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change. It may have been the world’s best and final chance to bring runaway climate impact under control. In the spirit of

On the 27th of July BCSS celebrated #WorldMangroveDay. To highlight their importance and complexity, we ask the question: How do land and marine animals as well as coastal communities and the planet in general, depend heavily on healthy mangrove forests? And why is this of relevance to Mozambique? Studies have found that mangrove trees can

Sharks and rays are critical species that play a vital role within the ecosystem. These species maintain an ecological balance within the food chain, as they control the variety and amounts of fish and other organisms. Large, deep-diving sharks and rays also help phytoplankton to grow, by moving between deep and shallow levels of the

We are excited to share the April issue of National Geographic Magazine Germany includes a four-page feature, including Dr. Mario Lebrato’s (BCSS Chief Scientist and Director) research project “Sinking of Gelatinous Zooplankton Biomass Increases Deep Carbon Transfer Efficiency Globally”. The magazine includes an infographic that explains how zooplankton and jellyfish bind carbon, crediting BCSS and

In April 2019, students Sara Forsberg (Stockholm University, Sweden), Manuela Amone and Laura Chivale (Eduardo Mondlane University, Mozambique) visited BCSS and used our platform to conduct research on blue carbon, which refers to carbon dioxide removed from the atmosphere, buried and accumulated as organic matter in soils, mostly via plant growth, in the scope of