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Update from our marine conservation volunteering holiday in the Azores archipelago, working on whales, dolphins and turtles
The final ‘leg’ of the 2026 Azores Expedition has begun. We welcomed our third and final group. With greetings, briefings and training sessions efficiently covered, we were all keen to get out to sea.
The latest Biosphere Expeditions Annual Magazine reveals how hands-on conservation is changing lives and delivering real results for nature.
As digital technology reshapes how we live and work, a growing number of people are seeking something radically different: real-world experiences that reconnect them with nature, purpose, and each other.
The new 2025 Annual Magazine from Biosphere Expeditions captures this shift, telling the stories of everyday people who have stepped away from screens and routines to take part in hands-on wildlife conservation. From tracking wolves in Germany, to protecting coral reefs in the Maldives and surveying snow leopards in remote mountain ranges.
I grew up surrounded by nature, conservation and expeditions. My father founded Biosphere Expeditions three years before I was born, so from a very young age, I travelled to places that most people only ever see in documentaries. Those experiences shaped how I see the world, how I travel and how I think about conservation.
My first expedition was in 2002, when I was just six months old, to Ukraine – which of course I don’t remember. But the expeditions I do remember had a huge impact on me.
In 2008 and 2010, when I was six and eight years old, I spent my summers in Namibia. I remember the vast landscapes, the people and, of course, the animals.
Continue reading “How going on wildlife expeditions as a child shaped me as an adult”Update from our marine conservation volunteering holiday in the Azores archipelago, working on whales, dolphins and turtles
Having now spent a few days at sea, the whole team is very familiar with the daily routine. Whether team members are on lookout, data collection or the camera, everyone knows their role on the boat. This seems to include starting most days with a humpback ‘hunt’.
Update from our marine conservation volunteering holiday in the Azores archipelago, working on whales, dolphins and turtles
Our survey days often start quietly, with limited information from our vigias (lookouts). But on Tuesday things changed. Our luck, like the weather, improved.
Media release – 2 April 2026
Around the world, ordinary people are stepping onto the frontlines of wildlife conservation. Not as tourists, but as citizen scientists, they help track species, collect critical data and support conservation of wild animals and places that would otherwise not be possible.
The new 2025 Annual Magazine from award-winning NGO Biosphere Expeditions brings these stories together, revealing the people behind global wildlife research and the real impact they are having in the field.
The Magazine celebrates the ‘Human Factor’. The volunteers, local communities and scientists whose lives have been touched by working on the frontlines of wildlife conservation.
Update from our marine conservation volunteering holiday in the Azores archipelago, working on whales, dolphins and turtles
Welcome to group 2 – our most diverse (in terms of nationalities) this year. This includes our Singaporean quartet and our local student placement from Portugal.
Update from our marine conservation volunteering holiday in the Azores archipelago, working on whales, dolphins and turtles
Successful sightings have continued for our last two days at sea.
Tuesday continued the theme of blue, fin and minke whales. We have now had more minke encounters in the past four days than I have had in eight previous whale and dolphin research expeditions to the Azores. Calmer seas definitely help with sightings! The now obligatory common dolphin encounter rounded off another great day at sea.
Update from our marine conservation volunteering holiday in the Azores archipelago, working on whales, dolphins and turtles
Our whale and dolphin research expedition has put to sea. It was choppy, but the team were delighted to be on survey.
We were soon rewarded with sightings of common dolphins south of Faial. We did try to go south of Pico, following up on reports of baleen whales, but the sea state and wind had other ideas!
Update from our marine conservation volunteering holiday in the Azores archipelago, working on whales, dolphins and turtles
It was great to welcome our first whale & dolphin research team (and most of their luggage) to get the 2026 expedition underway.
Team 1 seems to have endless enthusiasm for the days ahead. We have been able to complete the normal project briefings, presentations and equipment training over the first couple of days… and the missing bag also arrived. Success all round.
Continue reading “Azores expedition 2026: Wet & windy start”