We have a number of talks coming up about our expeditions, register for a talk by clicking here!

  • Overview
  • Objectives
  • Skills you gain
  • Costs to Consider
  • Site Conditions

2025 Dates

2 weeks: 1 week terrestrial & 1 week marine – 21 June – 4 July 2025
2 weeks: 1 week terrestrial & 1 week marine – 26 July – 8 August 2025
4 weeks: 2 weeks terrestrial & 2 weeks marine – 21 June – 18 July 2025
4 weeks: 2 weeks terrestrial & 2 weeks marine – 12 July – 8 August 2025

KwaZulu-Natal teams
The KwaZulu-Natal teams are based in the Somkhanda Game Reserve, where you will be accommodated in a tented, fenced camp. This reserve is community owned, home to the Big 5 (lion, leopard, buffalo, rhino and elephant) and stretches across 12 000 hectares of natural Zululand Bushveld. The reserve management are monitoring the effectiveness of having a designated conservation area which isn’t accessible by vehicle, and the distribution patters of the animals across the reserve. Opwall teams are assisting local researchers to assess the success of this for South African conservation and provide the reserve management with the empirical data they need to make informed decisions. 

You will spend half of your time in the field, helping with vehicle-based distance sampling of large mammals. You will also be working on foot, completing biodiversity assessments of birds and vegetation, estimating the level of fire and herbivory impacts on vegetation across the whole reserve. The rest of your time will be spent in camp where you will have daily lectures on “An Introduction to African wildlife conservation and management”. You will also assist with the analysis of camera trap data from an extensive network of cameras placed across the reserve to capture evidence of illusive and nocturnal species.

Sodwana Bay Diving Centre
At this centre you will complete a PADI Open Water dive training course or an Indian Ocean reef ecology course with practicals by diving (if already trained) or snorkelling. Our marine base is a short drive to the beach or pool, snorkelling and diving take place within the iSamangaliso Wetland Park, a UNESCO World Heritage site. 

South Africa Research Objectives

Operation Wallacea and our partners, Wildlife and Ecological Investments (WEI), coordinate large-scale research programmes to provide an empirical backbone for key conservation projects in South Africa. Our main aim is to assist conservation managers with pressing large-scale issues that they do not necessarily have the resources to address themselves. The South Africa research programme covers a series of reserves across the country, each using slightly different management strategies to conserve wildlife in their reserves. Big game areas in South Africa are fenced to avoid the spread of disease and conflicts between communities and dangerous animals. However, in reserves surrounded by densely populated areas such as Somkhanda Game Reserve, human-wildlife conflict can be a major challenge. Here, our research teams are looking at the extent of this conflict with a special focus on large mammal species. Large mammal distributions are monitored regularly through game transects, and nocturnal mammal distributions are assessed using a matrix of camera traps set up throughout the reserve. By combining this information with our knowledge of areas of dense human activity, we can begin to understand how human disturbance can alter large mammal movement and behaviour. 

The restriction of natural movement caused by fences can also lead to locally dense mammal populations with high levels of vegetation impact. Elephants, for example, are ecosystem engineers and their impact can alter vegetation structure and composition. By directly monitoring both fire and feeding impact on vegetation and its knock-on effects to other taxa, such as birds, our teams can assist the reserve managers to better understand how elephants can affect long-term change in the ecosystem. Monitoring of this type is also highly important in Gondwana Game Reserve, which is situated in the biodiversity hotspot of the Cape Floral Kingdom in the Western Cape, and is one of the first reserves to introduce elephants back into this region. This Big-5 reserve has converted agricultural land to conservation, with the large mammals feeding on old agricultural grasslands as fynbos vegetation holds little nutritional value for large herbivores. Reserve management here have therefore asked us to monitor how the large, enigmatic game species are utilising the various vegetation types found within the reserve, to conserve the diversity of critically endangered vegetation types while supporting Big-5 tourism and conservation of the area. 

  • Attend lectures/workshops on African conservation and wildlife management
  • Learn survey methods to sample large mammals, birds and vegetation 
  • Learn how to service camera traps and process camera trap data 
  • Learn tracking skills in the African bush 
  • PADI Open water dive qualification 
  • Participate in Indian Ocean Reef Ecology course
  • Opwall fee 
  • Cost of international flights into and out of Durban
  • Cost of internal travel to and from the start and end point of the expedition, plus any hotels you might require. The standard internal travel package costs around £264 or $356.
  • Extra nights’ accommodation in Durban costs around £132 or $178 (breakfast included). 
  • Park entrance fees are £40 or $54 terrestrial site and £40 or $54 for the marine site. 
  • Marine equipment rental – £60 or $75 per week for a full kit.  Or if you’re wanting to snorkel, kit hire is £35 or $45. While it is recommended you bring your own wetsuit, they can be rented for £20 – this must be prearranged rather than arranged on site. 
  • PADI manual and PIC card (if you are completing your Open Water qualification) – £75 or $98 approx.
  • Vaccinations and prophylactic medicines – cost can vary depending on your healthcare provider. 
  • All prices in GBP or USD unless specified.
  • Standard travel insurance – cost can vary, for 2 weeks it can range anywhere from £40-80 or $40-150.

Most of our volunteers fundraise for their expedition costs. Find out more.

Climate
Our expeditions run during the South African winter, so in Somkhanda temperatures can drop as low as 0-2 degrees at night. It is also dry season, however, so the chances of rain are slim here and days are usually sunny and warm with temperatures up to 18-22 degrees. The temperatures are generally warmer at night in Sodwana, and the sun can be quite strong when out all day at the beach. 

Fitness level required
Low. There are some short hikes over rough terrain, but most of the work is in or close to the game-viewer vehicles. 

Creature comforts 
Accommodation at both sites is in shared tents. In Somkhanda beds are provided, but at Sodwana you will need to bring a roll mat to sleep on. Both sites have hot running showers and flushing toilets provided in a separate block and constant electricity. There is reasonable phone signal in Somkhanda and good signal in Sodwana, but no wifi at either site. 

Locations

  • South Africa
  • Sodwana Bay
  • Somkhanda

Want to get involved with this project?

Preparation

Want to get involved with this project?

   Latest from our blog

  • Learning to dive – and learning to love it!

    Posted on 9th September 2024
    Gaining my Open Water PADI qualification through Opwall at Sodwana Bay was an experience I won’t ever forget.My time with Opwall has been the perfect balance of both structured and enjoyable, making it the perfect introduction to the world of scuba diving....
    Read more...
  • Stories from Sodwana

    Posted on 1st July 2024
    Sodwana Bay has many calls to fame – from the UNESCO recognized protected reefs to the variety of cultures that have amalgamated into a unique blend found only in Sodwana. On the beach, you will find a shop run by Peet, where...
    Read more...
  • My Experience in South Africa

    Posted on 4th March 2024
    Prior to coming to South Africa with Operation Wallacea, I was apprehending going to the wildlife part of the country. However, after the warm welcome that the staff of the Somkhanda Reserve and Sodwana Bay offered us, as well as the amazing...
    Read more...
Wallace House, Old Bolingbroke, Spilsby, Lincolnshire PE23 4EX, UK
| +44 (0) 1790 763194 | info@opwall.com