Tag: conservation volunteering

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‘Do it! Choose with care, but just do it’


Peter Pilbeam from the UK is a long-time supporter of Biosphere Expeditions. He took part in every single expedition to the Altai mountains that Biosphere Expeditions ran from 2003 to 2012. ‘And then it just snowballed’, he remembers. Here’s his story.

‘Initially I was intrigued by the slogan ‘Where on earth is the Altai?’ and my interest in snow leopards’, Peter recalls ,‘and I liked my first expedition so much that I just kept coming back’.

Peter (yellow circle) and his Altai expedition team in 2011.

‘In the years after the Altai expeditions, I went to Kyrgyzstan to continue with snow leopard expeditions, then to Slovakia and Germany to study wolves, Sumatra to work on tigers, and Scotland and the Azores for cetaceans.’ All in all Peter has been on 17 expeditions since Biosphere Expeditions started in 1999, which makes him one of the most experienced expeditioners of the NGO.

‘All these expeditions have taught me how to travel independently, how to camp in the wild, and a good dose of self-reliance’, reflects Peter, ‘and once on the expeditions, I really appreciated all the great and varied experiences, some very hot and humid like Sumatra, some cold and snowy like the Altai and Kyrgyzstan, some wet and with rough seas, such as Scotland and the Azores.’

Altai 2011
Scotland 2013
Slovakia 2017

‘And I always take lots of memories home with me’, says Peter, ‘some of the most abiding ones are trekking over mountains through snow and across scree slopes in the Altai, tracking wolves in snow and mud in Slovakia, and watching and recording whales – those beautiful creatures of the sea – around the Azores archipelago’.

Back home in the UK, Peter has now given lots of talks on snow leopard. He is also active as a mammal surveyor and teaches small mammal ID courses regularly. He has also become a reserve warden in his home-county of Cambridgeshire.

‘I expected to learn something on the expeditions, but I never expected it to have such a profound impact on me!’ says Peter. ‘ To anyone out there thinking about going on an expedition, I would say do it! Choose with care, but just do it!’, he adds with a laugh.

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Malawi: Preparing base

Update from our Malawi expedition volunteering with elephants, hippo, cats, pangolins and African biodiversity


We have made it to Vwaza base camp – a long day’s drive from Lilongwe on roads that alternate between good tarmac and bumpy dirt tracks.

It’s always a pleasure to arrive at base camp and find it in good working condition. There is still much to do to get everything ready for the arrival of the expedition team on Saturday, but the camp infrastructure is in place and working. Luka, our cook, is happy with the kitchen, which is especially important!

We heard hippos and elephants near the camp on our first evening and could make out the shadowy forms of both on the open ground in front of our campfire. The elephants were close enough for us to retreat to the safety of the camp’s communal area and carry on watching them. They seemed at ease with us and eventually wandered off.

The grunts of hippos continued through the night until the birds started calling at dawn: exotic sounds for the European ear. Today we have had good sightings of elephant, baboons and impala opposite base camp, and hippos, kudu, warthogs and many birds as we have explored around the lake side in the 4×4’s.

We have a long list of tasks over the next couple of days – checking kit and protocols, reacquainting ourselves with the wildlife reserve, and generally getting everything ready so we can start the expedition smoothly and efficiently tomorrow.

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‘Being on expedition was incredible, a real revelation, that gave my life path an unexpected turn.’


Pascal Tchengang, from Paris, France, loves travelling and being in touch with nature. In fact, this is how he discovered Biosphere Expeditions way back in 2002 and then went on an expedition to study big cats in Namibia in 2003, returning there in 2005 as staff. Today Pascal helps out part-time in Biosphere Expeditions’ French office near Paris.

Pascal’s first engagement with Biosphere Expeditions was in 2002, when he was researching options for holidays with a purpose in nature. ‘My favourite thing -then and now – when I travel is being in touch with nature’, Pascal reminisces, ‘there are certain places you can discover and visit on your own or with your family, but there are others where you really need to be accompanied by specialists’. This is how he came across Biosphere Expeditions all those years ago and has ‘never looked back’, he says with a broad smile.

Pascal on expedition in 2005.

‘You see, I love animals and wildlife in general. Back then I had a burning desire to go to Africa and see wildlife up close. Of course, there are national parks that you can visit on your own or with your family by renting a vehicle, but what I wanted was to get as close as possible to the large mammals. So, while searching the web, I discovered Biosphere Expeditions. Browsing through their website, I was fascinated by the programmes offered on each expedition. So I signed up and took part in my first expedition to Namibia in 2003’, Pascal recalls. ‘It was incredible, a real revelation. It was the first time I had ever come into close contact with large mammals. In Namibia, I had the chance to get up close to cheetahs and leopards, because we were accompanied by a scientist who was studying them there. In fact, during that first expedition, I enjoyed both the opportunity to encounter the animals and being part of a group that was genuinely curious and eager to learn’.

On the expedition Pascal met some senior Biosphere Expeditions staff and asked whether he could help out with the office in France. He could – and started assisting with enquiries and attending events, becoming a spokesperson for Biosphere Expeditions.

Two years later, Pascal was back in Namibia as staff, this time with Peggy, ‘the person I share my life with today’, Pascal says with his eyes lighting up, ‘this trip was her first of its kind, a real revelation’.

Peggy & Pascal

‘So, yes, if you are looking for a trip where you won’t encounter trivialities, and especially if you want to make yourself useful, then I really recommend Biosphere Expeditions’ Pascal says, adding with a laugh ‘and I don’t just say this because I am biased, but because I genuinely believe it’. For advice, over 20 years after his first expedition, Pascal is the representative in France, so please feel free to reach out. ‘I will be happy to provide you with as much information as I can’.

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Malawi: Leaving Lilongwe

Update from our Malawi expedition volunteering with elephants, hippo, cats, pangolins and African biodiversity

The advanced party has arrived in Malawi ahead of the start of the
expedition, to help with last preparations, alongside expedition leader
Roland, there is Simon, expedition leader in training. On the LWT side,
there are expedition scientist Lea and helpers Chim and Gideon.

Roland, Gideon, Lea, Chim, Simon

Lilongwe is hot, dusty and busy, but not TOO hot dusty and busy! It’s fine walking around here in a T-shirt and thin trousers in the middle of the day. The Malawian government has been doing major road upgrades over the last few years and it’s now mostly complete in Lilongwe – it’s almost fun to drive on the wide new tarmacced roads now. The taxi drivers we spoke to were very happy!

We have tied up a few remaining loose ends on the expedition prep and have just set off to Vwaza with all the kit and supplies we need to set everything up for the expedition there. It will be a long day, but it will end with arrival at our wonderful base camp, with baboons, hippos, antelope and elephants waiting for us. More from there in a day or two.

Convoy setting off for Vwaza



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Malawi: 2025 starter

Update from our Malawi expedition volunteering with elephants, hippo, cats, pangolins and African biodiversity

It’s not long to go until the start of the 2025 Malawi expedition. We are feeling prepared and excited. We have updated the research tasks – continuing the long-term studies of elephants and hippos at Vwaza along with the camera trap surveys, while also adding some new nocturnal mammal and bird research. All the activities we intend to do are in the 2025 Malawi Field Guide. Please can you make sure you download and study this prior to the expedition, and bring a copy of it with you, either as a soft copy on a tablet or a printed version. We are counting on a hard-working team to undertake all of the activities, following training at the start of the expedition, so the more you can swot up now, the easier it will be for you to get through the intensive training phase.

We have sourced some new equipment too, to aid this research – thank you to those of you who have volunteered to bring some of this kit with you. Our expedition partners, Lilongwe Wildlife Trust, have also been busy preparing: getting the camp and vehicles ready and sourcing the expedition food – not always easy in a country like Malawi where you can’t guarantee the availability of all the food supplies you might want! But I am confident that we will have the tasty and nutritious meals that we have enjoyed in previous years, prepared by our experienced expedition cook.

This will be my fourth time leading this expedition and I expect it to run as smoothly as in previous years – although something unexpected always seems to happen, usually involving elephants!

I will be flying out from the UK soon to work with LWT in final preparations and head up to Vwaza before the full expedition team arrive.

I will report back once I have arrived in Lilongwe and leave you with the 2024 picture selection to put you in the mood..

Roland Arnison
Expedition leader

Selection of 2024 pictures:

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‘Being woken up by elephants browsing trees just a metre away from where I was sleeping has to be a highlight of my life.’

Sven Strohschein from Hamburg, Germany, has made some great memories with Biosphere Expeditions, going with them twice to research whales and dolphins around the Azores archipelago, to study Amazon biodiversity in Peru, African wildlife in Namibia and the Arabian leopard in Oman. After these expeditions, he also joined the ‘Friends of Biosphere.’ ‘It was and is a great experience to be part of Biosphere Expeditions’, he sums up.

Sven on expedition in 2007

For Sven, who has been in the shipping industry since 1981, going on an expedition was something completely new for him: ‘I found Biosphere Expeditions through an article in a magazine. I was curious to get more experience and knowledge about wildlife conservation and looking after our natural environment.’ So Sven took the plunge into what was to become a formative experience.

Sven (circle) and his Azores expedition team

‘I can still remember sitting at the campfire under the stars during the Namibia expedition and hearing the lions roar. I also remember jumping into the Atlantic Ocean, trying to catch a glimpse of the whales after they went under the waves, and watching the sunrise at our research station on the Amazon.’ Perhaps his most abiding memories were ‘being woken up by elephants browsing trees just a metre away from where I was sleeping, witnessing a lion hunt in the middle of the night and talking to local people face-to-face’.

When asked about what he’s learnt, Sven thinks that a lot more needs to be done to help the natural world recover and also that everyone can help, not only scientists.

Sven (left) tracking a lion in Namibia

Looking back, Sven reminisces that “Each time I joined a Biosphere Expeditions team in the field, it was definitely a unique experience. I am happy and proud to also support Biosphere Expeditions through the Friends and by helping with media enquiries in Germany and talking to those who are thinking of coming on an expedition.’

More about Sven in articles in German magazines TOURS and Healthy Living.

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Tien Shan: Done for 2025

Update from our snow leopard volunteer project to the Tien Shan mountains of Kyrgyzstan

Team 3 has been a very productive 12 days with many highlights, a little ermine hopping through camp being one of them! We’ve had nights under the stars in bivvy bags watching shooting stars and the Milky Way, river dips, yoga, a successful Archaly valley reccee and of course lots of research.

Group 3
Ermine at base camp

The first few days as always, we focused on training, getting familiar with equipment, ready for driving off road, field surveys and camera trap servicing and placement. This also allows time to acclimate, especially for those of us that live at a much lower altitude for much of the year (yours truly). Getting to know the field guide is important too and we learn that identifying scat, prints, tracks, scratchings etc. is a dark art.

The results of this group were:

No more snow leopard pictures on this group, because all camera traps had been serviced recently. But two more potential snow leopard scats have been added to this year’s collection in the final group, bringing the tally to six total. Talking about scats: The first batch from group 1 has come back and all the high-mountain ones were indeed snow leopard; only the lower altitude one collected next to the ibex skull was not, so a very good result for group 1. Well done!

Over the three groups we have managed to survey over 97 cells on my last count, this has involved some big days out along rivers, through deep-cut gorges, up steep scree slopes, over majestic ridges and through alpine meadows awash with cranesbill, alpine aster and edelweiss, an abundance of wildflowers typical. In the background a scattering of prominent glaciers provide much needed water… But I digress. The overall headline results of the expedition are:

Expect the full expedition report with all details and conclusions in a few months.

Camera traps are now placed in and around three valleys; those cut by the Burkhan, Archaly and Jyluu Suu rivers. We have also had some very interesting interviews. You will need to wait for the report for more on that.

When the time finally came to pack down camp, swifts were frantically foraging overhead and the wildflowers had gone to seed. It’s amazing how short the alpine season is here. Emil, our scientist left with our equipment including yurts, showers and kitchen destined on the penultimate day, so we were back to wild camping for our final night. The last morning involved an early breakfast, a quick final goodbye to the local herders who have cooked and kept us fed many of the evenings here and then we were on our way. The journey to Bishkek went smoothly.

So it is now time for reflection and maybe a toast to the season that has been. A heartfelt thank you to all our citizen scientists in this final group for their huge effort. Thank you everyone for keeping high spirits when the weather grounded us, for playing a role in keeping expedition base camp running smoothly and of course for your data collection activities. Also, your company has been fantastic. Thank you to Johnny for all the guidance and Sofia for your delicious salads and desserts and of course all your help around camp, thank you Matthias for the training and taking me on as part of the Biosphere Expeditions team. Most importantly, thank you to all the citizen scientists this year, for without you, this couldn’t happen. Rahmat!

Darran Keogh
Expedition leader

I leave you with some more impressions and a couple of feedback videos:

Update from our Kyrgyzstan expedition to the Tien Shan mountains, volunteering in snow leopard conservation.

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Tien Shan: Archaly

Update from our snow leopard volunteer project to the Tien Shan mountains of Kyrgyzstan

Hello from base camp. The sun is shining, nights are cool with morning frost that is quick to thaw with sunrise.

All is well here, we are surveying many 2×2 km cells in and around the valley, even a requests from our citizen scientists to revisit and resurvey areas they reckon hold promise! We had some interesting local interviews today with the usual hospitality and offers of local food and drink and talk of close encounters with Tien Shan bear, wolf and snow leopard.

Today is our rest day. Monday we head to beautiful and remote Archaly valley (see pictures) to set up camp for surveys there and an extended reconnaissance for 2026. We look forward to bringing you more details at the end of the expedition, after we get back to Bishkek at the end of next week.

Update from our Kyrgyzstan expedition to the Tien Shan mountains, volunteering in snow leopard conservation.

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Tien Shan: Group 2

Update from our snow leopard volunteer project to the Tien Shan mountains of Kyrgyzstan

And just like that, the second Tien Shan expedition group of 2025 has concluded. A whirlwind of a fortnight with higher temperatures and more sunny days than any of us could have imagined – with the occasional blizzard thrown in for good measure.

All camera traps placed in 2024 have now been either serviced or retrieved and an extra seven camera traps placed. We have set up “stations” at three locations, which have previously yielded great results.

There were more snow leopard captures on the 2024 cameras, in fact we recorded four more snow leopard events. Here are the best ones:

And of course we recorded other animals too and achieved the following in group 2:

One highlight was the direct sighting of a Mongolian wolf with prey in its mouth:

Other animals posed for our cameras too:


After a severe weather warning thwarted our original plans for overnighters between Monday and Wednesday, we managed to squeeze in a brief overnight expedition on Thursday evening.

All in all, another very successful group. I will now hand over the expedition leader baton into the very capable hands of Darran – he is about to enter his third Tien Shan expedition group and now knows the valley like the back of his hand. I must thank each and every participant from this year and previous years: your motivation and hard work has afforded us incredible results that are far beyond our expectations. I hope to see you all again in the field again one day soon.

Johnny Adams
Expedition leader group 2

Update from our Kyrgyzstan expedition to the Tien Shan mountains, volunteering in snow leopard conservation.

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Tien Shan: Wolves…

Update from our snow leopard volunteer project to the Tien Shan mountains of Kyrgyzstan

Group 2 has settled in and is collecting good data. All but two camera traps have now been either serviced or collected, once again yielding snow leopard images.

The last two camera traps will require an overnight trip, but we have some severe weather warning for the next couple of days, so won’t be venturing deep into the mountains.

We have also set up two new camera traps at a new location, in this study site’s first “camera trap station” configuration. This is when two camera traps face a pinch point through which animals pass. The aim is to take pictures of animals – particularly snow leopards – from two sides simultaneously as this makes it easier to identify individuals through their unique coat spot patterns.

We have also found snow leopard tracks

and logged our first-ever direct sighing of a Mongolian wolf – carrying a small bird kill – by a group on cell survey.

All field data are up to date and the weather so far has been good, with clear warm days and no rain, though this is about to change. This group has so far surveyed 13 cells surveyed and conducted two interviews.

In other developments in Europe, the first batch of suspected snow leopard scat from group 1 has now been sent for DNA analysis to a specialist lab in Germany. We should have results within a few weeks.

Update from our Kyrgyzstan expedition to the Tien Shan mountains, volunteering in snow leopard conservation.