Scientist has whale of a time

SWIMMING WITH GIANTS: Dr Simon Pierce with a whale shark off the coast of Africa.

A former farm boy from Egmont Village who now swims alongside giant marine life off the African coast is home to tell of his adventures.

Marine scientist Dr Simon Pierce will talk on his work with whale sharks and other large marine animals as a guest of North Taranaki Forest & Bird at the New Plymouth District Council.

Dr Pierce will also speak to the pupils at his former Central School in New Plymouth.

He has spent the past five years in Mozambique conducting research on threatened marine species.

The 31-year-old has lived in bush huts, busted poachers, been charged by elephants and has seen more whale sharks, the largest fish in the ocean, than any other human being.

His work has been featured in media worldwide, including documentaries on BBC, Animal Planet, and the Discovery Channel. "I give credit to the New Plymouth public library," he laughed. My parents encouraged me to find out about the world."

Growing up on a farm near Egmont Village, Dr Pierce attended New Plymouth Boys' High School, before earning a BSc in Ecology from Victoria University.

As a young man he learned how to dive among the Sugar Loaf Islands off New Plymouth.

He completed his doctorate, at the University of Queensland in Brisbane, on the conservation and fisheries biology of sharks.

"It was a big shift, moving from Australasia to Africa. I'm always up for a challenge, it's pushing you out of your comfort zone."

His passion for the massive whales sharks, which grow to 20m and live for more than 100 years, remains undiminished.

"They're really interested in people. Sometimes I'll take the photo, then swim along for another few minutes, thinking how cool it is and how lucky I am to be seeing this."

Dr Pierce's talk will be at 7.30pm at the council, open to the public with a gold coin donation.

- © Fairfax NZ News