Friday, July 10th 2026 - 09:51 UTC
Among the projects is the first census of the Southern Rockhopper Penguin in more than fifteen years, to be carried out using drones and artificial intelligence
The South Atlantic Environmental Research Institute (SAERI) has secured funding for a series of new scientific projects aimed at strengthening environmental monitoring, conservation science and evidence-based management across the Falklands and the wider South Atlantic.
The projects span terrestrial, freshwater and marine ecosystems, and seek to answer four questions that guide the institute's work: what biodiversity the territory holds, how it is changing, what threats it faces and what management actions can be taken. SAERI, based in Stanley and founded in 2012, said the initiatives combine local priorities with contributions to international research and conservation.
Among the projects is the first census of the Southern Rockhopper Penguin in more than fifteen years, to be carried out using drones and artificial intelligence. Other work includes tracking the movements of giant petrels, sooty shearwaters and the White-chinned Petrel — a globally threatened species — as well as monitoring feral goats to better understand their distribution and abundance, and using genomic techniques to assess the genetic health of Cobb's Wren, a bird endemic to the archipelago.