A trochus spawning early in the evening on the night after full moon in November - because this behaviour happens at night and is difficult to observe, few people know about it.

Solomon Islanders monitoring trochus populations as part of recent efforts by the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) to help prevent over-harvesting.

Solomon Islands women gathering Palolo worms (which are a delicacy across the Pacific) on the night after full moon in October (the newly risen moon is visible at the top of the frame) - predicting the timing of the annual spawning cycle of Palolo worms (Palola viridis) is a good example of the ancient environmental knowledge of Pacific Islanders. Because of their close relationship to the sea, people have observed that the (highly visible) spawning cycle of the worms coincides with a seasonal and lunar cycle, and this knowledge has been transmitted orally down the generations.

An underwater image of the reproductive stage of Palolo worms swarming just under the surface of the water.

Square tail trout (Plectropomus areolatus) that have just been fished from a spawning aggregation in a reef passage in Marovo Lagoon, Western Solomon Islands (2000). This spawning aggregation was devastated by overfishing, largely because Solomon Islanders, like most people around the world, do not realise that fish populations are limited.

School children in a typical primary school in Papua New Guinea. Note the absence of furniture. Half of these children will drop out of school after 6 years of primary education. Poverty keeps a large proportion of the population from gaining a scientific education in Melanesia and many other Pacific countries. Global economic inequality is inextricably linked to resource management challenges in the region. (Photo by Mouli Mackenzie).

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