Monique van Bers stands by her “The Battle of the Baits” poster, photograph by Michelle Risi
The Seventh SANAP (South African National Antarctic Programme) Symposium was held in the Kwalata Game Lodge, Dinokeng Game Reserve, Gauteng Province from 16-19 November 2025. The Saving Marion Island’s Seabirds: The Mouse-Free Marion (MFM) Project was represented by three team members, Dr Anton Wolfaardt, Project Manager, Dr Sue Tonin, Assistant Project Manager and Monique van Bers, MFM 2024/25 Field Assistant, who spent 13 months on the island.
Anton gave a talk to the over 100 symposium delegates entitled “Saving Marion Island’s seabirds: The Mouse-Free Marion Project” and Monique presented a poster, co-authored with Anton, Sue and Keith Springer, MFM Operations Manager entitled “The Battle of the Baits: Understanding Bait Consumption in the Presence and Absence of Invasive House Mice (Mus musculus)”.
Anton Wolfaardt presents his talk, photograph by Michelle Risi
Monique writes to MFM News “The SANAP Symposium was wonderful to attend and a great opportunity to connect with fellow polar scientists. For me, it was a true full-circle moment – from collecting the data in the field to processing and finally presenting our findings in a poster.” She adds that it was inspiring to engage with others about the project’s important work on Marion Island.
Marion Island researchers and managers at the Seventh SANAP Symposium. Back row from left: Chris Jones, Werner Nel, Sue Tonin, Peter le Roux, Maëlle Connan and Anton Wolfaardt. In front: Abuyiselwe Nguna, Monique van Bers, Michelle Risi, David Hedding, Michelle Greve, Janine Schoombie, Charlene Janion-Scheepers and Carol Jacobs. Missing: Azwianewi Makhado
Several others associated with the MFM Project attended, including Carol Jacobs (Member, MFM Project Management Committee, Environmental Programmes, Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment,) and Dr Azwianewi (Newi) Makhado (Member, MFM Scientific and Technical Advisory Group, Oceans and Coasts, Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment). Both Newi (“Can the penguins and other seabirds cope with climate-induced challenges?”) and Carol (“Safeguarding Biodiversity Through Biosecurity ~ The critical role of SANAP biosecurity”) presented papers dealing with aspects of the biology and conservation of Marion Island.
In addition, papers of interest to the MFM Project were presented by Associate Professor Michelle Greve (Department of Plant and Soil Sciences, University of Pretoria, along with four co-authors (“Towards a Comprehensive Understanding of the Impacts of the Invasive House Mouse on the Terrestrial Biodiversity of Marion Island”) and Dr Maëlle Connan, Zoology Department, Nelson Mandela University with Emeritus Professor Peter Ryan, FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology, University of Cape Town (“Avian Scavengers as Indicators of the Island Ecosystem”). Peter chairs the MFM Scientific and Technical Advisory Group. Both Maëlle and Michelle work closely with the MFM Project.
A paper (“On island impacts of climate change on the Southern Ocean’s iconic seabirds”) by Associate Professor Susie Cunningham, FitzPatrick Institute, University of Cape Town and Peter Ryan, was co-authored and presented by their PhD student, Chris Jones.
Anton sums up “The SANAP Symposium offered an invaluable opportunity for the MFM Project team to reconnect with colleagues across the SANAP community. Their research provides the scientific foundation for our work: understanding Marion Island’s ecology, including the biology, ecology and impacts of mice, is essential to planning a successful eradication. Just as important is the community itself. The SANAP network brings decades of expertise, long-term datasets, and a collaborative spirit that strengthens every aspect of the MFM Project. At its core, the project is a partnership, and the SANAP research community is a vital part of that collaboration. The symposium highlighted how deeply the MFM Project is rooted in, and supported by, South Africa’s polar science community.”
Attendees at the Seventh SANAP Symposium gather for the traditional closing photograph
The Symposium was hosted by Professor Bettine van Vuuren (University of Johannesburg), Professor Werner Nel (University of Fort Hare) and Dr Liezel Rudolph (University of the Free State).
Read about the MFM Project’s attendance at the Sixth SANAP Symposium held in 2023, when Sue Tonin gave the Plenary Lecture.
With thanks to the Antarctic Legacy of South Africa, Michelle Risi and Monique van Bers for photographs.
John Cooper, News Correspondent, Mouse-Free Marion Project, 02 December 2025
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The very first photograph ever of breeding Wandering Albatrosses. Taken by Frederick Hodgeson on an already mouse-infested Marion Island on 26 December 1873 during the visit of H.M.S. Challenger, courtesy of The Natural History Museum, London
The Mouse-Free Marion Project is a registered non-profit company (No. 2020/922433/08) in South Africa, established to eradicate the invasive albatross-killing mice on Marion Island in the Southern Ocean. The project was initiated by BirdLife South Africa and the South African Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment. Upon successful completion, the project will restore the critical breeding habitat of over two million seabirds, many globally threatened, and improve the island’s resilience to a warming climate. For more information or to support the project please visit mousefreemarion.org.
