On Tuesday 5 October 2021, a group of girls, Daring Disas, of the organisation, Brave, experienced a day of entomology and taxonomy as part of a collaborative workshop of the Cape Leopard Trust and the Iimbovane Project.

Brave is an organisation that inspires and empowers girl leaders by supporting girl-led initiatives and building a network of girl leaders across the African continent.

In line with the organisations’ aims, the collaborative workshop focused on showcasing careers in conservation, especially entomology and taxonomy.

Twenty-five girls between the ages of 15 and 17 years attended the workshop at the Back 2 Basics Adventure Campsite in Grabouw.

Kicking off the day with an icebreaker, the girls quickly got to the know Iimbovane project team and Abusisiwe Ndaba, an entomologist and UCT MSc student, working with the collections at the Iziko Museum. The rest of the day’s programme involved hands-on fieldwork and the use of microscopes.

One of the day’s highlights was the girls’ interview with entomologist and MSc student, Abusisiwe Ndaba. Abusisiwe’s research is funded by the Foundational Biodiversity Information Programme (FBIP). For her current project, Abusisiwe is revising the ant group Anoplolepis and her study will produce an updated species identification key to this group. Her study will also update the geographical distribution of species within this group and will confirm the presence or absence of the invasive species, Anoplolepis gracilipes, in Southern Africa.

The girls showered Abusisiwe with questions and were interested in why she decided on becoming an entomologist. She answered:

“I started out with my BSc in Biological Sciences which at first is very general.  In my second year, that is when I started learning about ants and going to fieldwork with my lecturer. Since I started helping with fieldwork and looking at the ants through a microscope, I came to love ants and decided to specialize in them.”

When asked about her duties at the museum, Abusisiwe explains:

“There’s a lot to do at the museum. It is home to several insect collections. Collections are drawers and cabinets full of pinned insects, some of which were already collected a long time ago. My duties were sorting of samples, mounting, identifying and databasing ants. Sometimes when I am unsure about my duties or the identification of species, I can also ask my mentor for help.  I also helped in preparing for the museum exhibitions and management of the collection” 

Being an entomologist and MSc student has its moments of joy but also its challenges, so Abusisiwe shares her experiences with the group of girls.

“My moments of joy are each time I see the tiny and delicate features of ants when I examine them through the microscope. Looking at ants with the naked eye, they all look the same, but a whole new world opens up when the microscope magnifies them.”

“One of the challenges is the public speaking. I was at first very shy to speak in front of people but having to do presentations at conferences as part of being an entomologist, I am now much more confident and comfortable when speaking in front of people.”

“Another challenge is the long hours behind the microscope. If one spends too much time staring non-stop through the microscope, you will start to make mistakes, so I make sure to take regular breaks.”

The girls also asked Abusisiwe about what personality a person needs to have to become an entomologist. “One needs to have lots of patience and work very meticulously,” says Abusisiwe.

At the end of the workshop, Abusisiwe wished the girls all the best for their future studies and careers and encouraged them with her motto for success: ‘Just keep going!’

The workshop was supported by the Rand Merchant Bank Fund.