A group of 26 students from the Faculty of Science recently visited Stockholm, Sweden within the framework of Annual Biology Trip organised by the Science Students Society (S-Cubed). The trip was led by Dr Sandro Lanfranco and was organised by Ms May Hefny on behalf of S-Cubed.
The principal aim of the trip was to expose students to habitats, flora, and fauna that they would not encounter in the Mediterranean. The highlight of the trip was an excursion to the primeval forest in the Tyresta National Park, where students mainly observed the plant life of the forest. Other stages in the trip included visits to the Bergius Botanical Garden at Brunnsviken, where the students familiarised themselves with a wide variety of plants from different biomes, and the Swedish Museum of Natural History, where several displays concerning the evolutionary history of life on earth tied in closely with the students’ current studies.
The trip also included a visit to the Vasa museum, where the 17th century ‘Vasa’ is preserved, after having been salvaged from Lake Mälaren, after sinking a few minutes into its maiden voyage in 1628. The biological and chemical aspects of the ship’s preservation were of interest to the students.
There was also time for a visit to the Skansen open air museum at Djurgården where a variety of Nordic animals including, amongst others, wolverines, otters, wolves, lynx, reindeer, seals, foxes and bison were roaming their enclosures.
The trip was short yet fruitful and is now an annual fixture in the S-Cubed calendar, and reaffirms the organisation’s commitment towards providing science students with enjoyable educational experiences.
