Research on Island Habitats Aiming to Contribute to their Conservation

As a member of Arhcipelagos’ terrestrial research team, my aim is to learn about the fauna living on the Samos island in order to preserve it better. We have multiple projects (most of them seasonal) on the different species that we monitor around the island, such as the jackal bioacoustics surveys, jackal scats analysis, jackal

Applying Varied Skills – creative and scientific – to an Internship with Archipelagos

Julia Sweatman joined both the media and terrestrial teams at Archipelagos in May 2019, soon after she achieved her BSc in biology and global health from the University of Toronto, in Canada. Julia was dually interested in working on the ongoing golden jackals (Canis aureus) projects as part of the terrestrial team, and in creating

Combining Botany with Terrestrial Wildlife Research

Boglárka (Bogi), a Natural Sciences student from Eötvös Lóránd Science University in Hungary, joined the terrestrial team at Archipelagos in June 2019, when she decided to expand her view of wildlife conservation on the Mediterranean island of Samos. As she says It turned out to be her best decision so far – spending an incredible

Terrestrial and Marine Conservation Internship

Tom, a wildlife conservation student at the University of Salford, came to Archipelagos in the winter of 2018 as part of his placement year. As part of the Marine Mammal team, Tom actively contributed to research and surveys as well as participating in terrestrial monitoring surveys, giving him a rounded and varied experience of Samos’

An in-depth Interview with an Archipelagos Terrestrial Researcher

What I enjoy the most about my project is having the chance to explore the island in all its beauty, walking under the sun and merging into the wildlife while – hopefully – finding some jackals’ tracks!” Juliette is a lively 20-year-old girl from Italy and France who joined our terrestrial team in October 2018

Restart of Bird Monitoring: Return of the Flamingos!

As winter arrives, it brings along various species of birds that are travelling from different parts of the world, migrating from their origin to seek better food resources, nesting areas, and climate conditions that correspond to changes in their environment. Due to the collective anthropogenic impacts worldwide, which have accumulated overtime since the industrialisation period

Herpetofauna Monitoring in the south-east of Samos Island

As the winter approaches reptiles are preparing for brumation, a process similar to hibernation but for cold-blooded animals, to handle an extreme change in temperature, burying themselves under the soil. Reptiles are crucial to study due to their high susceptibility to environmental changes and our projects focus on the habitat preference of the Common chameleon

Preliminary Assessment of Insect Biodiversity of Samos Island

When it comes to insects many people often inadvertently recoil away in disgust or terror, thinking only of their legs as creepy or their eyes as beady. But what not many people realise is that insects perform many important roles not only in regards to natural ecosystems but also to our society as a whole.

Chameleon Project of the Terrestrial Team

In time for spring, Archipelagos’ terrestrial team has started chameleon surveys. The common chameleon (Chamaeleo chamaeleon) becomes active around April – May when it wakes up from its torpor and climbs up from underneath the ground. From there it will find a bush, tree, or other sturdy vegetation for its roost. On Samos, Chamaeleo chamaeleon appears in

Bird Monitoring on Samos & Lipsi Island

The Terrestrial team of Archipelagos is continuing its monitoring of Aliki Psili Ammos (Natura 2000), which includes several other wetlands and ponds including Mesokampos marsh and Glyfada ponds. A recent visit to the island of Lipsi also allowed for surveying of Vroulia Bay (Birds Directive Site) for two weeks. These areas are key for migratory