See the video here.
Environmental DNA (eDNA) is genetic material originating from organisms. This material can be filtered from water samples. It comes from feces, mucus, blood, and sloughed cells, tissue, and in some cases can be attached to particles. The Megafauna team issampling from locations near Malpelo’s coast and reefs.
In labs, the eDNA is extracted, amplified and sequenced. These sequences are analyzed to identify species present in the sampled seawater. It also helps to build a reference database to accurately identify species.
Malpelo is a volcanic, massive, steef ans sharpy rock where you find thousands of sea birds. They make their nest here. You have also thousands of land crabs ans big lizards. This local, rich and unique biodiversity is protected by the army. Enjoy this clip !
From Colombia, Switzerland and France … scientists are more than happy to be here in Malpelo a real sanctuary for marine life and biodiversity. Onboard with Monaco Explorations, their dream came true
We are in front of Malpelo Island, the volcanic rock.
Malpelo is unhabited. The island is like an oasis in the middle of nowhere with a very rich biodiversity. We will discover that in the next days.
En 2006 Malpelo has been declared UNESCO’s world heritage site. Check out this video.
We are on our way to Malpelo (Colombia). We left Panama City (Panama) last night after reloading the boat with fuel and food. We will travel 36 hours before arriving. Our mission in Malpelo includes tagging sharks and sampling for Environmental DNA.
We spent International Women’s Day in Panama City with local artist and conservationist Aïa Mar who spends time studying Earth’s elements and species and transforming her experiences int o artwork that is aimed at raising awareness for biodiversity conservation. You can read more about Aïa and her work (and her 2 rescued monkeys) on our blog
Photos 1 & 2 © Monaco Explorations (2018). Photo 3 © Aïa Mar
Monaco Explorations next mission will be at Malpelo Island in the Eastern Pacific Ocean about 500km off the coast of Columbia. The Monaco Explorations team and scientific teams arrived in Panama City, Panama to prepare for the mission. Our vessel arrived in the Pacific Ocean via the Panama Canal on March 8th. It took a total of 9 hours in total to pass through the 80km canal. Construction on the Panama Canal began in 1881 and was completed in 1914. Nearly 14,000 ships pass through the canal annually.
