Meet the team: Aidan du Preez
Aidan du Preez joined SAFER lab this year as a masters student having completed his BSc and Bsc Hons at Rhodes University. Passionate about the outdoors, Aidan is an enthusiastic angler which drove his interest in fisheries research. Aidan is conducting an assessment of the South African recreational fishing permit scheme and how it is perceived by stakeholders. Welcome Aidan!
Meet the team: Xolani P. Nabani
Xolani Prince Nabani joined us for his BSc Hons after developing an interest in fishes during his undergrad at UKZN. Fortunately he chose to stick around, and Xolani is now pursuing an interesting MSc focussed on comparing the metabolic physiology of red roman from exploited and unexploited regions in South Africa.
Meet the team: Michael Pyle
New to the lab, Mike brings with him an economics background and a passion for angling. The product of a collaboration between the science and commerce faculties at Rhodes University, Michael is co-supervised by Prof. Warren Potts and Dr. Chris Bova from SAFER Lab. This should put him in good stead for his MCom focussed on the economic impact of recreational fisheries along SA's wild-coast. Welcome Mike!
Meet the team: Nonhle T. Mlotshwa
The SAFER Lab would like to reintroduce Nonhle Thubelihle Mlotshwa. Nonhle is no stranger here at the lab as she completed her BSc Hons with us last year, but we are delighted to announce that she has decided to continue her eco-physiology research with us for her MSc. Nonhle fell in love with the ocean and all its creatures by watching documentaries in her youth, and has a growing research interest in ichthyology and marine biology. Nonhle is working towards her MSc focussed
Investigating recent fish kills in Eastern Cape estuaries: Several species reach tipping points
Prolonged drought has gripped the Eastern Cape province of the country for the past several years, resulting in low freshwater input into a number of local estuaries. As a result, many temporarily open/closed estuaries (estuarine systems which are periodically separated from the ocean by sand spits) have not broken for several years. Low freshwater input and consistent evaporation has resulted in exceedingly high salinities (salt content), which has in turn led to the periodi