During the weekend of March 15, 2014, an excursion to Ecoscience was organized from the Nelson Mandela African Institute of Science and Technology, headed by Prof. Thadeus Tarimo, Coordinator for Biodiversity Science and Ecosystem Management in the School of Life Sciences and Bio-Engineering and Dr. Linus Munishi, an elephant specialist, who is academic staff within the School. From the students invited in this excursion were five first year MSc students, specializing in biodiversity and ecosystem management who are: Winisia Makirita, Elivida Godfrey, Elibariki Eliangilia, Barakael Abdiel Ndossi and Yusuph Namkeleja.

While on site, the Director of the Ecoscience Centre, Ben Beeckmans, was requested to give a lecture on the Northern Tanzanian geology and geomorphology, part of the basic knowledge for the students and a complement in studying the area’s biodiversity. The students were asked to assess the diversity, abundance and composition of the trees and shrubs in Ecoscience area, by organizing nine 10 square meter quadrants in  a linear and perpendicular frame with distances respectively of 250 and 100 m between the squares. Within these squares a list of all grasses, trees, shrubs, etc. were collected and studied.

The report with the results of this study will be published later on our website.