ZOOLOGY students and staff from the University of Cumbria are heading off on a delayed field trip to Gambia this week.

Political turmoil in the west African country at the start of the year led to a last-minute cancellation of the conservation trip, a highlight of the third-year zoology course run at the university's Carlisle campus.

"We’ve got lots of friends in Gambia, which is an amazing place see wildlife, and we were disappointed when the Foreign and Commonwealth Office advised us not to go in January," said course leader Dr Roy Armstrong.

"It is a special place that’s jam-packed with wildlife. From birds of prey to monkeys and crocodiles, in a compact area you can see a wide range of habitats. It’s brilliant but it used to be even better and the trip shows students the opportunities that exist to see how we can bring it back."

The university has a successful track record in conservation work in the country. Earlier trips have helped confirm the existence of the dwarf crocodile which was thought to be critically endangered, while research has done on the behaviour of Temminck’s red colobus (Piliocolobus badius temminckii). Work by students and staff from Cumbria showed that shallow man-made watering holes have been successfully used by the species as a place of safety from predators. The plan during this month's visit this month is to help construct more watering holes and to install sensitive cameras to track movements.

Dr Armstrong said the work is carried out with the full cooperation of local communities. "You can’t carry out conservation work unless you involve the community; we don’t tell people what to do. Many are forward-looking and they see what opportunities there are for eco-tourism."