Two Brazilian Scientists Visit York Middle School
November 7, 2005.

Two scientists from deep in the wilds of Brazil visited York Middle School on Monday to present their research aimed at conserving the largest wetland in the world, the Pantanal. Dr. Helen Waldemarin and Ellen Wang, as well as several other scientists, have been working in the Pantanal for almost five years with the objective of designing conservation plans that would help to save this critical collection of habitats.

"The richness and abundance of species in the Pantanal is almost unparalleled on earth," said Dr. Waldemarin. "It is critical that we attempt to protect the diversity of the flora and fauna that is found in this region of the world." Ellen Wang added, "We cannot see the world's ecosystems as disconnected. What impacts us in the Pantanal of Brazil impacts ecosystems around the world including the United States. For instance, many of the ospreys in the U.S. spend the winter months in the Pantanal. If fish populations in the Pantanal drop, so will the population of osprey in the United States."

Jeff Wilford, a science teacher at York Middle School, invited the two researchers to present their conservation work in the Pantanal to seventh graders at the middle school. In April, Wilford, along with six students from York High School will make the long trek down to the Pantanal to work for twelve days with Dr. Alexine Keuroghlian tracking and capturing peccaries, a wild pig and favorite food source of the jaguar. "By determining the health of the peccary population in the Pantanal we can begin to make assumptions about the relative health of the jaguar population. If the peccary population is healthy we can at least rule out food supply as any reason for a decline in jaguar populations." Jaguars have been under intense pressure due to loss of habitat and illegal killing due to poaching and confrontations between ranchers and the big cats.

While in Brazil, Pantanal Team Six, as the high school students are called, will connect live with middle school students as well as interested members of the community. They will also interview scientists and collect data, photos and video, for their website www.expeditionpantanal.org . The website is already up and contains a wealth of information for anyone who has ever wondered, or maybe has never even heard of, the Pantanal. Scientists from the Brazil have even been using the site to prepare visitors to the project about the region and the work being conducted there.

Anyone interested in more information about the project is asked to email Jeff Wilford at jwilford@yorkschools.org or visit www.expeditionpantanal.org.



<- Back to Team6 News