I am taking part in the Edinburgh Marathon Festival 5k run on the 26th of May to raise money towards funding my masters research project in Peru. I've already received a small grant from my university towards my expedition but this is a very expensive undertaking, so any donations will be a big help, no matter how small!

I am currently undertaking a masters in wildlife biology and conservation, and in June 2018 I will be travelling to Peru to spend 6 weeks in the Amazon rainforest collecting data for my research project. The title of my project is "Annual changes in and differences in amphibian habitat use and niche separation between species in the Pacaya-Samiria National Reserve, Peru"

This project is important as amphibians all over the world are in big trouble. One third of the world’s 7,000 amphibian species classified as threatened as their population numbers are declining. These declines have been linked to habitat loss, pollution, disease, and extreme climatic events caused by climate change. With 461 discovered species, Peru has the fourth highest number of amphibian species in the world.

The results from my project and ones like it can play a vital part in understanding the habitats that amphibians use. Collecting this data is important as it can provide a valuable insight on how things like habitat destruction and climate change may be influencing the highly productive and important ecosystem that is the Amazon rainforest, and the species that occupy it. This information can be presented to politicians and governments and can be used to inform strategies and policies to help mitigate against and combat habitat loss and climate change.

Thank you for your support!