Olivia Patterson
Project Scientist – Mozambique
olivia.patterson[@]marinemegafauna.org
Overview
Olivia Patterson is a marine scientist and conservationist at MMF, based on the Inhambane coast of Mozambique. She leads MMF’s whale shark conservation project on this coast, an ongoing initiative spanning fixed-wing aerial and drone surveys, community fisher engagement, and in-water research across one of the Indian Ocean’s most biodiverse stretches of coastline. The project is part of a six-country Western Indian Ocean effort, and builds on more than two decades of MMF survey data documenting some of the most dramatic megafauna population declines on record, notably an 89% decline in the estimated number of whale sharks using Tofo over fifteen years.
The core investigative work is spatial threat mapping: understanding where gillnet fishing pressure and whale shark aggregations overlap along the Inhambane coastline. Olivia coordinates a two-tier aerial survey program, with quarterly fixed-wing microlight flights for broad coastal coverage and higher-frequency drone surveys for fine-scale documentation at priority hotspots, and manages community engagement and MMF’s expansion into new communities along the coast.
Olivia also leads MMF’s conservation work in the Bazaruto Seascape, home to the last viable dugong population in the western Indian Ocean, including community-based seagrass monitoring, dugong drone surveys, and baited remote underwater video (BRUV) assessments for Critically Endangered wedgefish. Alongside the research program, she leads alternative livelihood initiatives, environmental education, and community outreach with fishing communities in areas of high dugong-fisheries conflict. Read more on the Dugong & Seagrass Conservation project page.
Olivia brings a strong technical field background to her role. An experienced scientific diver and drone pilot, she has managed complex, multi-stakeholder research programs across southern Africa and Southeast Asia, and is passionate about conservation that is built with communities, not just for them.
Education
2018 BSc Biology, First Class Honours
University of Bristol, United Kingdom
Biography
Olivia grew up in a quiet countryside village in the south of the UK, far from the sea but always drawn to it. As soon as she could, she made the ocean her home. She learned to dive at university and volunteered on coral reef restoration projects as an undergraduate. After graduating from Bristol with a first in Biology, she moved to a remote island in Borneo, working as a Science Officer and Divemaster, conducting reef restoration dives, founding a sea turtle photo-identification program, and leading community outreach with local Bajau fishing communities. In 2021 she moved to Mozambique, spending several years as a PADI Instructor and science officer with other NGOs in Tofo before stepping fully into marine research and conservation with MMF. She joined in early 2024 to lead the Bazaruto Seascape dugong program before taking on the whale shark conservation project, and has been based on the Inhambane coast ever since. One of the most biodiverse stretches of coastline in the Indian Ocean, it is a place she is committed to protecting.
Current research
Leads
- Dugong & Seagrass ConservationMozambiqueProject leader
- Inhassoro Wedgefish ProjectMozambiqueProject leader
Team member
