Charles Mpofu

Charles loves travelling around the world, although mostly it’s been through the Google Earth app! He was born and raised in Botswana’s capital Gaborone and attained a Bachelor of Science degree in Biology and Environmental Science from the University of Botswana. For his final year undergrad project thesis, he worked on the reproductive success of the beetle Callosobruchus maculatus in different stored legume products.

When not at UCT, Charles is based in the north-western part of Botswana, which is the gateway to the world-renowned Okavango Delta. He is currently a wildlife biologist with the Department of Wildlife and National Parks, Botswana. He has extensive field experience including regular waterfowl and terrestrial bird monitoring and vegetation assessment. Charles leads a team of researchers in investigating Wattled Crane population status in Northern Botswana with emphasis on the Okavango Delta.

From the MSc programme, Charles expects to enhance his understanding of technical aspects of conservation to approach conservation issues with a broader understanding. He also would like to share conservation experiences with fellow classmates. Charles aspires to becoming one of the leading avian researchers in Botswana and believes that this programme will act as a stepping-stone in achieving that. Furthermore, Charles believes that he will be able to positively contribute to the body of knowledge and influence decision making, especially in wetland areas such as the Okavango Delta.

Thesis: Exploring the use of GPS-tracking to investigate the diet of African vultures. (Supervisor: A/Prof. Arjun Amar)