5 week Marine Professional Development Program 
Words by Chloe and Ena 

This week was our first week of independence. We started the week strong with a sunrise beach clean. We collected as much trash as possible and logged the type and quantity. It was quite a sad feeling, as if we had barely made a dent, but it was nice to help reduce pollution. We continued our day by doing a whale survey from the land (saw lots of breaches!!!) and lunch at Jay’s. After lunch, we swam out to coral gardens to complete a snorkel transect. We ended our day by analysing coral photos and enjoying Matapa.

On Tuesday, we set off bright and early for Guinjata fisheries, where we watched the sunrise and spent the day measuring and IDing the catch. To keep busy while we waited, we did the Macarena on the beach.

Wednesday was something different and exciting!!! We went out on the first boat launch and used the hydrophone to listen and record whale songs. THEY WERE SOOO NOISY!!! The males were singing, and the mothers and calves grumbled and whooped. Having survived some seasickness, we finished the day with another land-based survey.

Thursday we walked to Paindane. It was busy, seven boats went out, and they came back with approximately 300 fish (giving us lots to log in the evening. We spotted whales super close to us, and they were a mother and calf, fin-slapping! Our muscles are definitely being built as we helped the fisherman push their boats up the dunes.

Friday we returned to Guinjata for another day of fisheries research, and Saturday we went for a fun dive! We saw a turtle and a potato bass; we ended the day with a leaving party for Joana. The LTO staff proved that they are very capable entertainers during karaoke!

Sunday, we enjoyed a seahorse safari near Tofo. It was so impressive how the guides spotted the seahorses that blended seamlessly into their environment. The day concluded with dinner at Sunset Lodge and a beautiful view of the sunset.