Research news
Sussex biologist stands up for the Amazon
Posted on behalf of: School of Life Sciences
Last updated: Thursday, 18 April 2013
Mika Peck paddle boarding in Brazil
Map showing route for Mika Peck's paddle board expedition down the Amazon River in July 2013
Sussex conservation biologist Dr Mika Peck will be standing up for the wildlife and people of the Amazon Basin when he heads an international team on a 1,300km paddle down the mighty Amazon River in July.
The aim of the mission – the first descent of the Amazon River using inflatable stand up paddle boards – is to raise funds for rainforest conservation projects while increasing awareness of the challenges facing the people and wildlife of the Amazon region.
Donations via the team’s web site will benefit three local organisations in the Amazon region by
- Purchasing a fibreglass eco-canoe made by the Cofán, one of the oldest surviving indigenous groups in Ecuador, which will be used by conservationists to help curb illegal wildlife trade along the Amazon.
- Supporting Maikuchiga, a local NGO that rescues and rehabilitates illegally traded primates while providing local employment and environmental education.
- Giving the eco-canoe to wildlife organisation Entropika, which organises conservation projects with the co-operation of local indigenous people.
The seven expedition members, who are scientists and conservationists, will be paying their own expenses, but funds will be used to cover the costs of their indigenous guide.
Dr Peck will be keeping a blog of the team’s adventures as they paddle along the river through Ecuador, Peru and Colombia to the border with Brazil.
The team will take a month to complete the trip, travelling 80km a day and encountering numerous challenges along the way before reaching their destination – Amacayacu National Park in the south of the Colombian Amazon and on the Brazilian border, where Entropika is based.
Dr Peck says: “The Amazon is a wonder of the world that shows off nature in all its glory. The beauty of descending it using paddle boards means that we can get up close and personal with the river’s natural treasures, such as river dolphins, tapirs, birdlife and primates.
“We’ll be camping by night on the river bank or staying with indigenous communities. At the end of the trip the paddle boards will be used to survey wildlife in the Amazons flooded forests – in particular night monkeys – to determine impacts to wild populations from illegal trade.”
To get into training for the epic voyage, Dr Peck has been paddling in the sea off Shoreham and along the River Arun in Sussex. He says: “The Arun probably has more teashops than the Amazon.”
- Dr Peck will be taking part in a Stand Up Paddle Board Demo day at Lagoon Watersports in Hove on Sunday 19 May. The event will offer paddle boards for the public to try, raffle prizes, a barbecue, and a paddle from Hove Lagoon to Brighton. All funds from the £10 entry fee will go to the Amazon charities.