As part of my MSc Marine Geography placement year, I spent six months in Malta, where I spent my time as an intern for Sharklab – Malta. One of the main projects I worked on was the Fly with Bull Rays Project (FWBR). I spent most days carrying out snorkel surveys in various Maltese locations, including the Golden bay, Mellieha bay and Marsaskala. During snorkel surveys, I carried out surveys along a chosen route to locate and identify using non-invasive photo identification methods and Bull rays in the area. Before my internship, I had never seen or even heard about Bull rays and will always remember the first time I witnessed a Bull ray's beauty and calmness, and it is something I'll never forget. I will also never forget the day I witnessed just what we humans can do to such a beautiful animal. While snorkelling during one Golden bay survey, I witnessed two bull rays that had markings and injuries to their back. One bull ray had a portion of its right-wing cut off, while the other had shallow markings along it's back. It increased my passion for helping save and protect such critically endangered species. I really enjoyed the experience as I got to work and make friends with people from various countries with the same interests as me. The Fly with Bull rays' team were extremely friendly and welcoming and taking part in the project helped me gain experience in a topic I am incredibly passionate about. I can't wait to come back and help protect these fantastic species again.