MarAlliance Expeditions
Join Our Expeditions
Experience the life of a tropical marine field biologist while helping us collect invaluable data that will contribute to the conservation of these vital species.
Join MarAlliance’s team of marine biologists, guides and fishers for an unforgettable expedition researching sharks, rays and turtles. Experience the life of a tropical marine field biologist while helping us collect invaluable data that will contribute to the conservation of these vital species.
We will train you so that you can be directly involved in each aspect of our field work from conducting in-water surveys while snorkeling Caribbean reefs, to launching and reviewing the unexpected results of underwater camera traps, to setting longlines to capture, measure and tag sharks and rays. As an expedition volunteer, you will be immersed in the team and contribute directly to the critically-important long-term monitoring of sharks, rays and turtles in key Caribbean sites and Cabo Verde.
Join us and immerse yourself in this unique experience.
Contact us at expeditions@maralliance.org and let us know which Expedition you’re interested in joining.
Space is limited.
Playa del Carmen, Mexico
• 16-20 Jan 2027
• 20-24 Jan 2027
• 15-19 Jan 2028
• 19-23 Jan 2028
Dive with the ‘Jaguars of the Sea.” Each year, pregnant bull sharks return to the waters off Playa del Carmen before giving birth, creating a rare opportunity to dive alongside one of the ocean’s most powerful predators. This is more than a shark dive. It’s a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for experienced divers to come face to face with bull sharks while contributing to the science that will help protect them.
Working alongside local shark experts, you’ll use photography, videography, and cutting-edge monitoring techniques to document these magnificent animals. Your observations will help researchers better understand bull shark residency, migration, habitat use, and reproductive behavior. Expect adrenaline, respect, and an unforgettable encounter with an apex predator, while producing real citizen science that supports shark conservation.
Coiba, Panama
• 13-18 Mar 2027
• 18-23 Mar 2027
• 11-16 Mar 2028
• 16-21 Mar 2028
Coiba National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site off Panama’s Pacific coast, is one of the most biodiverse marine reserves in the Eastern Tropical Pacific -home to hundreds of fish species, dozens of shark species, rays, sea turtles, and the large pelagics that pass through this stretch of the migratory corridor shared with the Galápagos. Decades of protection and low human disturbance have left its reefs and channels remarkably intact.
On this expedition, you’ll join Dr. Rachel Graham and her team on guided dives and in-water surveys to document this natural wonder firsthand – contributing to photo identification, camera trapping, megafauna tagging, and eDNA sampling that expand our understanding of the species using this critical, still-understudied corridor. Your work will help build the baseline data needed to guide long-term protection of one of the Pacific’s last great marine wildernesses.
Half Moon Caye & Lighthouse Reef Atoll, Belize
• 22-26 May 2027
• 26-30 May 2027
• 20-24 May 2028
• 24-28 May 2028
Lighthouse Reef Atoll, Belize’s most secluded coral reef, harbors a rich diversity of marine megafauna: reef, lemon, and nurse sharks; occasional hammerheads; and key turtle species–hawksbill, loggerhead, and green turtles. These sentinel species are paramount indicators of ocean health.
Be a part of the Caribbean’s longest marine megafauna monitoring project, get hands-on experience deploying technologies to record, measure and track sharks, rays, and turtles, you will make essential contributions to the conservation of these sentinel species while providing sustained economic alternatives for former shark and turtle fishers.
Gladden & Ranguana Caye, Belize
• 8-12 June 2027
• 14-18 June 2027
• 15-19 June 2028
• 19-23 June 2028
Idyllic Ranguana Caye, a remote private island paradise within Belize’s southern barrier reef and the Gladden Spit & Silk Cayes Marine Reserve, hosts crucial populations of Caribbean reef and nurse sharks, rays, turtles, and large predatory fish such as snappers and groupers.
Your participation in this long-standing conservation project will help us collect invaluable data on populations, abundance, density and habitat preference of a range of species with traditional fishers, and will help evaluate the effectiveness of protected areas and the ban on fishing nets on the progress of marine rewilding in Belize’s southern seas.
Las Perlas, Panama
• 1-5 July 2027
• 5-9 July 2027
• 2-6 July 2028
• 6-10 July 2028
The breathtaking Las Perlas Archipelago, a global biodiversity hotspot within the Eastern Tropical Pacific’s Bay of Panama, boasts diverse marine habitats for sharks, rays, sea turtles, and numerous finfish species. Unfortunately, this area faces significant conservation challenges due to inadequate management and a broad lack of baseline data. On this expedition, you’ll be at the forefront of addressing these predicaments.
With hands-on training alongside Dr. Rachel Graham and a dedicated team of researchers and local fishers, you’ll learn monitoring techniques, identify and tag various megafauna species, including white-tip sharks and sea turtles, and even assist in collecting eDNA samples. Your efforts will not only contribute vital data for conservation efforts but also provide sustainable career alternatives for the local fishing community.
Isla Mujeres, Mexico
• 17-20 July 2027
• 21-24 July 2027
• 15-18 July 2028
• 19-22 July 2028
Picture a flowing, swirling tapestry of open-mouthed, white-spotted whale sharks and graceful, jet-black manta rays. Guided by Dr. Rachel Graham, our founder and a world-renowned expert on both species, you’ll learn the latest science and gain invaluable insights into these regal, tranquil creatures. Snorkel alongside the world’s largest fish, and if conditions are right, the world’s largest ray. Contribute to a global citizen science project mapping the whale sharks’ migratory paths and population dynamics.
Isla Mujeres, Mexico
19-22 & 23-26 July 2025
18-21 & 22-25 July 2026
Mexico – 3 nights / 2 activity days
Playa del Carmen, Mexico
22-26 Jan & 20-24 Nov 2025
21-24 Jan 2026
Mexico – 4 nights / 3 activity days
Ambergris Caye, Belize
22 Feb – 1 Mar 2025
21-28 Feb 2026
Ambergris Caye – 7 nights / 6 activity days
Lighthouse Reef Atoll, Belize
24-31 May 2025
23-30 May 2026
Belize – 7 nights / 6 activity days