About MRCI
Through our partnership with MRCI in 2022, Conservation Diver was able to equip this long standing program with the tools, platform, research database and methodologies to take their conservation efforts to the next level, offering courses tailored by leading Marine Biologists and conservationists from across the world.
Attending this program you will not only contribute immensely to the conservation goals MRCI have set, but also gain the knowledge and necessary skills to continue your conservation mission wherever you will go. Every volunteer will depart knowing the importance of the work they have done and how equally important it is to continue building on their newly acquired skills and knowledge.
All Conservation Diver courses at MRCI has been specifically designed and modified for their unique environment in order for volunteers to learn about the immediate environment where our work takes place as well as an understanding of the impact they are making.
Our Courses
Coral Reef Ecology and Monitoring – $95
This course is a great first step in learning about the reef ecosystem and leads to a basic understanding of why conservation diving is key to the protection and preservation of our marine environment. Coral Reef Ecology and Monitoring course is perfect for anyone who doesn’t have the time to complete the full Ecological Monitoring Program (EMP), but still has the urge to immerse themselves into the world of conservation diving. This course explores how to look at the underwater world from a scientific point of view by assessing key living and non-living reef components. Students will learn basic survey techniques and be equipped with the skills to conduct data research. Students that have successfully passed the course requirements will receive a certification, which can be credited toward the EMP course if ever the student decided to return.
For more information about course standards and requirements click here.
Ecological Monitoring Program – $350
This EMP course is a mandatory course for our Marine Conservation Volunteers at MRCI. This course marks the to start your scientific/conservation diving journey. Students will learn how to assess reef health and resilience and will be certified to conduct surveys independently. Assessed parameters include – fish/invertebrate abundance and biodiversity, coral cover, coral growth forms and health. Students require this course to continue with most of the other Conservation Diver courses as it is vital to understand the ecosystem you are working in first before progressing to any restorative or intervention conservation techniques. This course provides the foundation for all monitoring work at MRCI, providing us with vital information about the reef and helping us to understanding the success of the additional work we are undertaking. It further allows us to compile accurate long term data to determine future projects and policy enforcement that may be needed. The EMP course also allows us to gather data for scientific papers and reports.
Course duration is approximately 5-6 days. As always, this is weather and ocean condition dependant.
For more information about course standards and requirements click here.
Coral Restoration Theory & Techniques – $150
This course is an additional course Marine Conservation Volunteers students can complete once they have achieve EMP certification. It is incredibly beneficial not only for the environment but for anyone interested in taking the next step in conservation diving. This course focuses on the importance of coral restoration research as well as the various techniques and methods used to successfully plan and deploy a restoration program. The course will cover the most modern coral restoration methods that are supported by scientific research and conservation efforts to ensure genetically diverse and resilient reefs. You will cover topics such as fragment collection, nursery management, coral transplanting, fragment monitoring and more. This is considered by most students to be one of the most rewarding courses along with the Artificial Reef course and we highly recommend doing both of these courses together.
Course duration will be roughly 3-4 days, but this could vary depending on the number of students.
Artificial Reefs Theory & Techniques – $300
This is another great additional course that folds in with the Coral restoration course. The course provides great insight to the importance of artificial reef work and how to successfully construct and manage an artificial reef site. Artificial reefs have many purposes ranging from art installations, offering structural support for coral growth in disturbed areas, substrate for corals to naturally recruit and many more. Artificial reefs might sometimes look simple in design, but there is plenty consideration and planning that needs to take place before any artificial reef is created. In this course you will be involved in the construction and deployment of an artificial reef installation to give you as much practical and hands on experience as possible.
Course duration will be approximately 3-4 days, but this could vary depending on the number of students.
For more information about course standards and requirements click here.
Coral Predator Population Monitoring & Management – $95
We often observe outbreaks of coral predators across the globe which has devastating consequences on reef ecosystems. These predators include Drupella Snails and Crown of Thorns starfish, animals that can easily be overlooked on the reef by untrained eyes. In this course students will learn to monitor and identify different coral predators and understand what the effects are of these imbalances on the reef ecosystem. Students will also learn about various possible solutions to manage outbreaks of these corallivores.
Course duration will be approximately 1-2 days, but this could vary depending on the number of students.
For more information about course standards and requirements click here.
Seahorse Ecology & Monitoring – $95
Little is known about the seahorse populations of Madagascar and most observations often go undocumented, but this course is designed to completely change that. Through hours of exploration dives or “seahorse scavenger hunts” we have found specific dive sites where healthy abundance of sea horses have been observed. We are hoping to set up the first accurate seahorse observation and monitoring database in Northern Madagascar and would love for you to be a part of it. In this course students will learn photo identification methods as well as monitoring populations. Join us on this new journey in understanding the seahorses that call Madagascar home.
Course duration will be approximately 1-2 days, but this could vary depending on the number of students.
For more information about course standards and requirements click here.
Sea Slug & Nudibranch: Ecology & Monitoring – $95
We are often reminded to appreciate the smaller things in life and Nudibranch & Sea Slugs are just that. These small colourful marine gastropods are incredibly important to understanding our total reef biodiversity and are key indicators. They provide a lot of information regarding chemical changes on our reef ecosystems and the impact this has on the underwater environment. This course will cover the ecology and taxonomy of these colourful marine gastropods and how to conduct science-based surveys monitoring abundance and diversity. Whilst Conservation Diver was implementing the program at MRCI they found many new species to the area and a few potentially even to science. Similar to our Seahorse Monitoring course, through our work documenting the species on our reefs we hope to put Madagascar on the map as hot-spot for Nudibranch discovery.
Course duration will be approximately 1-2 days, but this could vary depending on the number of students.
For more information about course standards and requirements click here.
Book now
Contact us directly at dive@madagascarvolunteer.com
Instagram: @madagascarvolunteer