The body of UF student Thad Owens, who was swept away while swimming in a river in Namibia, Africa, was found on Saturday.
Owens was in Africa as part of a study abroad program with UF's wildlife ecology and conservation department.
On Thursday, he was swimming in the Kunene River, near the border of Namibia and Angola, when he got caught in the current and went missing, according to news reports.
A search effort was launched with help from the Namibian government, the U.S. Embassy, local villagers and private search teams, said William Dippel, the Owens' family attorney.
His body was found in the river, according to a statement from UF.
Owens was a 27-year-old wildlife ecology and conservation major, according to news reports.
He began attending UF in the spring of 2007 after transferring from Valencia Community College in Orlando, according to The Gainesville Sun.
The semester-long study abroad program in Namibia was launched last spring, according to UF's Web site.
About 10 students are enrolled, according to the program's Web site.
In addition to working on research projects - with students split into groups looking at birds, reptiles and mammals - students spent most of February and March at the Cheetah Conservation Fund's facilities, where they helped with the annual examinations of the site's 47 cheetahs, according to the program's Web site.
UF spokesman Steve Orlando said the family has asked UF not to make any comments to the media beyond the content of its statement.
"The family has requested that in lieu of flowers, contributions be sent to the University of Florida Foundation, P.O. Box 14425, Gainesville, Florida 32604, designated for the Thad H. Owens Wildlife Ecology Fund," UF's statement reads.
An event at UF to remember Owens is being planned for today, Dippel said.
The event is tentatively scheduled for 4 p.m., he said. No location information was available.
Owens is at least the eighth UF student to die this academic year.
