‘I wished to have an effect on defending nature,’ says Angelika Krimmel from Germany, reflecting on what drew her to her first expedition with Biosphere Expeditions. That first expertise was in 2016, finding out whales and dolphins within the Azores. It wasn’t lengthy earlier than Angelika discovered herself coming again time and again – to Slovakia in 2017 to observe lynx, bear and wolf; to Kyrgyzstan in 2019 and 2024 for snow leopard analysis; and to Kenya in 2023 for African biodiversity conservation.
Whales, paw prints and digicam traps
Every mission supplied one thing unforgettable. “After per week with the whales, you suppose nothing can prime the primary sight of 1. However then a curious sperm whale swam alongside our boat, jumped 3 times and appeared straight into our eyes. That look went on to my coronary heart.”
In Slovakia, Angelika remembers the awe – and slight worry – of discovering an enormous bear paw print within the snow. ‘It had slipped attempting to climb a slope and the claw marks had been large. Later, seeing a lynx on a digicam lure was a thrill – my first time working with that expertise.’
Predators at evening
Kenya introduced a extra visceral connection to nature. ‘One evening, simply as I used to be falling asleep, I heard an animal screaming – it was being hunted. The subsequent morning, we checked our digicam traps and noticed a feminine lion consuming a wild boar. It was so near our tents.’
What makes conservation work
By way of these experiences, Angelika has come to understand the various layers of conservation work, together with efforts of native folks, scientists and fieldwork. ‘Don’t neglect the native folks’, she says. ‘The scientists have to be actually skilled.’ She’s additionally discovered how distant fieldwork can convey collectively very completely different personalities. ‘Being with folks I’d not have met in any other case, in distant conditions, that’s a part of the problem and the expansion.’
Greater than conservation – tradition too
On her two Kyrgyzstan expeditions, the area people was a spotlight each occasions. In 2019, the staff was invited to observe Kok Boru — a standard horseback sport involving a goat carcass. ‘On the finish, the meat was cooked and shared. A few of us had been honoured with the goat’s eyes – I refused’, Angelika remembers with a smile.
In 2024, shepherds from close by areas organised pleasant ‘Olympic Video games’ with the staff, together with tug-of-war and musical chairs. ‘We laughed a lot, and so they all received! The dinner afterward was scrumptious.’
Angelika additionally recollects assembly Emilbek, a Kyrgyz scientist. ‘He’s extremely educated, is aware of historical past and nature, and has a fantastic sense of black humour – particularly concerning the communist previous.’
The challenges are price it for the influence you make
In Kyrgyzstan’s excessive altitudes, every day surveys had been bodily demanding, “however we had a job to do’, Angelika insists, ‘so we made it work’.
When requested what stands out probably the most, Angelika doesn’t hesitate: ‘Unforgettable nature, nice teamwork, and the satisfaction that I contributed.’
Wanting again, Angelika’s expeditions haven’t simply modified the place she travels, however how she experiences the world. ‘I don’t like cities any extra’, she laughs. ‘My vacation locations have utterly modified.’ What modified most, although, was her manner of seeing. ‘I liked nature earlier than, however not as intensively as now. My understanding of how every little thing is related has deepened a lot.’
She nonetheless retains in contact with a fellow individuals, and when requested what her dream expedition could be? ‘Someplace actually distant with a distinct tradition – one thing alongside the strains of Kyrgyzstan.’
Her message for anybody contemplating changing into a citizen scientist with Biosphere Expeditions? ‘This expertise is so overwhelming. It’s essential to do that.’
