Our seas may be changing , but tracking the changes can prove challenging . Kirsty Andrews consults an expert on the subject
KIRSTYANDREWS
Eyes under the sea
Our seas may be changing , but tracking the changes can prove challenging . Kirsty Andrews consults an expert on the subject
I
was talking all-things-underwater recently with a non-diving friend and she asked me whether on my travels I ’ d seen any evidence of climate change . I talked about differences I ’ d personally noticed on my most recent trips : coral bleaching caused by temperature change and ocean acidification ; warming waters causing behaviour differences from marine megafauna onwards ; changes to the patterns of ocean currents and their impacts .
She also asked me whether I ’ d noticed any differences in UK waters as a result of climate change , that one was harder to answer . I ’ m very conscious of being insufficiently qualified to give an informed opinion , and the dangers of sweeping statements . I also don ’ t feel that the changes are as obvious . But then , I am as well placed as anybody to investigate this : I dive in UK waters all year round , and have a back catalogue of years ’ worth of photos , the vast majority of which sit on my hard drive to no purpose .
I ’ ve talked in this column before about the great work done by Seasearch , the citizen science arm of the Marine Conservation Society . Taking the Seasearch Observer course and filling in dive reports with them is one measurable way to contribute to the pantheon of knowledge of our home waters and their inhabitants . It ’ s not the only way though , for those of you who haven ’ t quite managed to work up the enthusiasm for regular form-filling .
Last week I exchanged messages with Dr Keith Hiscock of the Marine Biological Association , as he was putting together his annual report ‘ The State of South-West Seas ’. He collates reports from a range of sources over the year and comments on topics such as increases or decreases of abundance in certain species , range extensions and , as he puts it , ‘ curiosities that have popped up ’. One of Keith ’ s observations this year was that plumose anemones ( a relatively long-lived UK anemone ) have noticeably declined in in-shore areas of mainland S-W England over the past five or more years . Looking at a photo of the same section of the Scylla wreck taken in 2011 and 2020 , it is undeniable that where once were many plumose , now there are none . Funnily enough , a couple of friends had mentioned to me a while ago that they were shocked to rarely spot them in this area these days , but I ’ d thought not much about it until Keith asked me . I perused my recent photos and , by themselves , they didn ’ t tell much of a story , but combined with others ’ observations , a picture begins to form .
The flipside of this , of course , is that when I excitedly tell Keith of my latest new-to-me species find , he sometimes reminds me that
Seasearch diving off Eddystone lighthouse
( in the case of the super-cool slipper lobsters I finally saw last year ) that they ’ ve been reported in UK waters since 1758 and that 37 individual reports have been made between 1999 to 2020 . Not to worry , I ’ m still thrilled to see them and won ’ t hesitate to share my next observations , whether unusual or not .
I ’ m sure Keith will welcome your own contributions in tracking the ‘ state of our seas ’. He tells me that he sees his role as an editor to track links from various sources and ‘ tell the story ’, but that any diver including those contributing “ does anyone know what this is ?” images can make a valuable contribution . Where to start ? Maybe with some of the charismatic noticeable species such as spiny lobsters , ringneck bennies , feather duster worms , unusual sea slugs , common octopus , sea anemone shrimps … the list goes on . Keep your eyes peeled and don ’ t forget to pass on your findings , not just in the pub but to khis @ mba . ac . uk �
Slipper lobsters Scyllarus arctus in a crack off Black Head , Cornwall
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