I moved to the Maldives from the UK in 1983. For 15 years I worked for the Ministry of Fisheries in Malé, initially as a fishery statistician and subsequently as a founding member of the Marine Research Centre (MRC, now the Maldives Marine Research Institute). Then in 1998, with my wife Susan, I set up the Whale and Dolphin Company. Our primary aim has always been to provide exceptional tropical marine wildlife holidays, but the ability to spend many weeks at sea every year also provides a platform to conduct marine research. So, everyone who takes part in our trips contributes directly to marine research and ultimately to marine conservation.
For a summary of some of my research interests, scroll down.
For a list of research publications:
One issue facing conservationists is that wildlife, and nature generally, tends to be unvalued in traditional economic considerations, unless it is extracted for direct human use (as for example in fisheries). Some conservationists contend that wildlife has its own intrinsic value, but that argument has little traction with most politicians, who place more emphasis on economic considerations when making their decisions. So to effect change, to bring about action for conservation, it is sometimes helpful to demonstrate the the non-extractive value of wildlife. Two of my studies have looked at the economic value of diving and snorkelling with sharks and manta rays in the Maldives. The former (with Maldivian colleague Hudha Ahmed) calculated that in 1992 a single Grey Reef Shark could generate about US$3300 per year in tourist revenue, but had a one-time value of just US$32 to a fisherman. A later study found that Manta Rays were worth about US$8.1 million per year to the Maldivian economy in 2006-08. Both studies influenced subsequent Maldivian government decisions to protect both sharks and Mantas.
With colleagues at the Maldives Marine Research Institute, Charles has been maintaining the national checklist of fishes for many years. Over 1200 species have been documented, each catalogued with museum specimens and photographic records. This provides a solid scientific background for other works, including Charles’ best-selling field guide ‘Reef Fishes of the Maldives’, which cover some 500 of the species most likely to be seen while diving or snorkelling, all illustrated with underwater photos taken in the Maldives
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