Both managed to get lost, one fell and scraped a knee and jellyfish prevented any swimming, but French students Melanie Laforet and Melusine Herschtal otherwise survived their recent koala research expedition relatively unscathed...

The two Mels spent 2 weeks on St Bee's Island, off Mackay, with CQUniversity's Dr Alistair Melzer, scientists from Brisbane and America and a group of research volunteers.

Melanie Laforet (left) and Melusine Herschtal on St Bees Island

The French visitors helped with koala monitoring, tracking and catching duties and will write a report to gain study credits.

"We did plenty of walking, often up steep hills in the hot sun, but there was time for socialising and relaxing too," Ms Laforet said.

They explained that, on separate occasions, they were each with groups of volunteers who managed to get lost on the island for a few hours. Luckily they had GPS, compass and radio equipment to help them find the home base after a while.

The pair, who are at the French equivalent of Master's level, are being hosted by CQUniversity's Centre for Environmental Management over the Australian spring/summer period.

They are completing a research internship for their programs at ENSAR, l'Ecole Nationale Supirieure Agronomique de Rennes (the National Higher Agronomic School at Rennes).

Checking koala data

Ms Laforet, from Paris, said she would be choosing a specialty soon and was tending towards chemistry in relation to plants suitable as medicines.

Ms Herschtal, from Lille in northern France, said she was considering a specialty involving animal behaviour and related statistics.

Radio tracking 
More radio tracking 
Meeting the locals 
Meeting more locals