麻豆传媒

So, what do you do?

I coordinate the West African marine programme at BirdLife International. I鈥檓 based in Dakar, Senegal, but my work covers the length of the coast from Mauritania to Sierra Leone, and out to Cabo Verde.

How did you end up working in this field?

I have been passionate about wildlife protection since I was a teenager. I studied in my home country Benin and for an MSc in Belgium, then worked in marine turtle conservation in Benin and then Gabon before landing in West Africa. After a few years, I became known as a marine wildlife conservationist and specialist in turtles, sharks, rays and seabirds. That led me to BirdLife.

Can you tell us about the marine environment where you work?

The Canary Current Large Marine Ecosystem (CCLME) stretches more than 3000 kilometres from the Strait of Gibraltar to Guinea-Bissau. It is one of the four major upwelling systems in the world and one of the richest for biodiversity. Its coastal and oceanic waters host about 12,500 species.

Does that make it a good fishing area?

Yes, it ranks third in the world in terms of primary productivity. The fisheries in the CCLME region are of major economic and social importance for the coastal populations and states of the region.

What are the biggest challenges facing marine conservation in the area?

The huge data gaps and overfishing. For many years, the region has suffered from unsustainable fishing by both foreign and domestic fleets, and experiences the highest levels of illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing in the world.

Can you tell us about your main projects?

Our teams have made tremendous efforts to tackle illegal harvesting from seabird breeding colonies in Marine Protected Areas. We are also working on reducing by-catch of seabirds and sea turtles and threats from offshore oil and gas activities.

Seabirds are a key component of marine ecosystems and important indicators of wider biodiversity and ecosystem health. Using data from tracking devices attached to birds, we have worked to identify hotspots where many species or many individuals occur consistently.

Is it difficult to convince others of the need for conservation?

Convincing people about the importance of reducing seabird by-catch by using simple, non-scientific vocabulary is something to experiment with. I remember this question: 鈥淗ow does a flying animal 鈥� a bird 鈥� become entangled in underwater fishing gear?鈥� After a lot of effort, people are aware of this as a problem, which has helped start the first steps towards the reduction of seabird by-catch.

鈥淭he marine ecosystem we are working to conserve is one of the richest in the world for biodiversity鈥�

Do you have an unexpected hobby?

I have come to love birdwatching since joining BirdLife. One of my favourite birds is the northern gannet (Morus bassanus). Its eyes have a light blue to light grey iris. I spent hours watching them at their breeding sites in the UK and see the same birds wintering off our West African coast. I also love terns, after many months working in Senegal鈥檚 biggest colonies of royal tern and Caspian tern.

If you could have a conversation with any scientist, living or dead, who would it be?

Luc Hoffmann, who was co-founder of the World Wildlife Fund and known as 鈥渢he man who insists on preserving the Earth鈥�. He brought a revolution in conservation. Even after his death in 2016 his legacy continues.

What scientific development do you hope to see in your lifetime?

Tiny GPS devices for animal tracking and some equipment to reveal the interaction between fishing activities and marine biodiversity.

What鈥檚 the best thing you鈥檝e read or seen in the past 12 months?

It isn鈥檛 really the best thing, but I want to share this: roaming cows digging through garbage cans in the middle of Dakar. It makes me think about how their diets have adapted to their situation of wandering in a vegetation-free environment.