This expedition to Southern Ethiopia conducted a multidisciplinary scientific survey in the largely undocumented Bale Province, focusing on the region surrounding Goba (9,500 ft) and extending into the Saneti Plateau (up to 12,900 ft). The team—comprising zoologists, a botanist, a pedologist, a surveyor, a chemist, and an interpreter—established a base camp south of Goba and examined approximately eighty square miles of terrain ranging from cultivated plains to barren afro‑alpine zones.
Major geographical work included mapping the course of the River Micha, clarifying the positions and elevations of peaks such as Anabura, Grati, and Chorchora, and constructing a detailed reconnaissance map using plane‑table and compass methods. Meteorological recordings for August 1962 showed higher‑than‑average rainfall compared with historical data, with afternoon storms frequent but not disruptive to field operations.
The expedition documented previously unrecorded rock‑hewn shelters in the Micha Gorge—around thirty‑five in total—likely used historically as Christian refuges during conflicts with Muslim forces. A trial excavation at Robae Cave near Ghinnir produced pottery, bone, and evidence of temporary occupation but no deep archaeological stratigraphy.
Botanical collecting produced around seventy flowering plant species, offering several range extensions though no new species. Zoological work revealed significant faunal overlap between Ethiopian highland and East African species. Notable finds included Rhinolophus hipposideros minimus, previously unrecorded south of Eritrea, and Canis mesomelas schmidti, at its northernmost limit.
Though logistical challenges prevented the planned crossing into the Dumal Valley, the expedition produced valuable cartographic, ecological, meteorological, zoological, botanical, geological, and archaeological data for a region still poorly documented at the time.