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Monthly
electronic news bulletin for the marine life of the NE Atlantic Oceans
including the seas and seashore around the British Isles.
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MARINE
LIFE NEWS
Reports
of marine wildlife from all around the British Isles, with pollution incidents
and conservation initiatives as they affect the flora and fauna of the
NE Atlantic Ocean.
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8 December
2004
A
pod of seven White-beaked
Dolphins,Lagenorhyncus
albirostris, off Dungeness, Kent. They
gave a spectacular display including leaping clear of the water as they
fed and were in view for most of the afternoon. I have looked at the sea
on an almost daily basis at Dungeness since 1989 and this is the first
time I have seen White-beaked Dolphins.
NB:
This species of dolphin is not often recorded in the eastern English Channel.
BMLSS
Cetacea
7 December
2004
Commercial
fisherman Andy Le Prevost
trawling on the Lady Patricia caught a Almaco
Jack, Seriola rivoliana, (originally
identified as a Guinean Amberjack,
Seriola carpenteri), on the south-west Casquet bank, near
the Channel Islands, at night.
ID
Details
The
fish was caught at a water depth of 25 metres. The fish was small (length;
30.7 cm, weight 637 grams) and similar in size to the specimen caught by
George
Staples east of Herm Island on 7
September 2000. The sea temperature was 11.7°C.
My records indicate that this is the fourth confirmed Amberjack
species caught in Channel Island waters.
Full
Details
Previous
Record
1
December 2004
Guernsey
commercial fisherman Steve Fallaize
landed a handsome Couch's
Sea
Bream, Pagrus pagrus, on weighing
2688 grams whole (5.93 lb). The fish was netted in a water depth
of about 20 to 25 metres over a mixed shell-gravel bottom off Guernsey's
west coast. This is the largest Couch's Sea
Bream that I have recorded in Guernsey.
Small
Couch's Sea Bream have been frequently landed
in recent years around the Channel Islands, but this is a southern fish
and it is uncommon any further north.
16
November 2004
A
commercial fisherman gill netted a 15 cm long Tadpole
Fish, Raniceps
raninus, off the Pea Stacks on Guernsey's south coast. This is
a solitary rather than an unusual fish from around the Channel Islands
and all my Guernsey records for this species occur between November and
early April.
November
2004
A
small Big-eyed Tuna,
Thunnus
obesus, was reported caught on road and line off south-west England.
This is the first record on these report pages and the only previous record
seems to be from 1985. Further details are not available at the time of
writing.
BMLSS
Tunnies
30
October 2004
A
Whiting
was caught on rod and line four miles out of Brighton, Sussex, and it promptly
regurgitated a Seahorse,
Hippocampus
sp. Seahorses are not known off the Sussex coasts, although I have received
at least one unconfirmed sighting before. This is probably the Short-snouted
Seahorse,Hippocampus
hippocampus. (It is usually the shallow water species Hippocampus
guttulatus that has been recorded off
the Dorset coast.)
BMLSS
Seahorse Page
Seahorse
Trust
Seahorse
Survey
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All
reports by Andy Horton unless the credits are given
to
other observers or reporters.
Links for News
Reports:
Nature
Notes Webring
Helford
(Cornwall) Marine Conservation Area
Friends
of Moray Firth (NE Scotland) News Page
Sussex
at Sea News Page
Cornish
Marine Wildlife News
Cornish
Marine Sightings Archives 2003 |
PICTURE
GALLERY
Each
month, at least one special marine image will be published from images
sent to the BMLSS. This
can be of the seashore, undersea world or any aspect of the marine natural
world, especially the underwater life, but not restricted to life beneath
the waves. Topical inclusions may be included instead of the most meritorious,
and images will be limited to the NE Atlantic Ocean and adjoining seas,
marine and seashore species and land and seascapes.
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13
November 2004
A
Pogge,
or Armoured Bullhead,
Agonus
cataphractus, was photographed under Selsey Lifeboat Station at a depth
of four metres in a sand and muddy area with a few areas of hard clay bedrock.
The
sea temperature was 11° C.
The
Pogge
(it is not clear how often this book name is used) or Armoured Bullhead
or Hooknose, is a fish that is rarely reported
by divers, anglers, fishermen, rockpoolers or shrimpers, but this absence
is not because it is rare. It is believed to be common in the shallow seas
over sand around most of the British coast and it is one of the small fish
most often washed up dead on the strandline of Sussex. Its small size and
favoured habitats means that its is not caught on rod and line and it inhabits
the rather barren sea bed areas that are of little interest to divers.
It swims over sand and its sensory organs around its mouth indicates it
feeds on organisms in the sand, probably worms and shrimps. They is a complete
absence in the BMLSS records of live specimens
caught on the shore.
It
should be confused with the often encountered Short-spined
Bullhead (or Sea Scorpion), Taurulus bubalis.
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Whelks
laying eggs at Selsey in shallow water (4 metres depth) off the Sussex
coast (13 November 2004)
Photographs
by David Cropp
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Shore
Topography Series
The
name of the particular coast should be included and the grid reference,
if known. Print photographs can be included in Exhibitions
and on the BMLSS Web Sites and electronic publications. Electronic images
in *.JPG format can also be considered for the web site. They should not
exceed 150K in size.
Photographers
submitting pictures should indicate if they wish them to be considered
fro inclusion as confirming permission takes work and time and can delay
publication of the news bulletins.
Shore
Topography Portfolio
Click
on the album for more links (On-line link)
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DIARY
In
chronological order, the most recent events are at the top of the page.
Events open to the public, free or for a nominal charge only are included.
Most Seminars need to be booked in advance.
-----------------------------------------
BIOSIS
Conference Calendar for Zoology
(Major
Link of all biological conferences around the world)
-----------------------------------------
-
Plymouth
Talks Series 2004
Further
Information Link
Facilities are available for schools, linked to the national curriculum.
Talks
start at 7:00 p.m.
at
the National Marine Aquarium,
Coxside, Plymouth Devon.
Admission
– Adults £2.50; Children and NMA members £1.50, inclusive of
refreshments will be available.
Please
reserve your place by calling the Aquarium on 01752 275204
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SAMS
Seminar Series
The Scottish
Association for Marine Science (SAMS)
Dunstaffnage Marine Laboratory, Dunbeg,
Oban, Argyll PA37 1QA
Tel: 01631 559000 Fax: 01631 559300
Email: mail@dml.ac.uk
For more details/how to find SAMS
see our website: http://www.sams.ac.uk
Unless otherwise stated, seminars
are held on Fridays at 4:15 pm
in the SAMS Conference Room
** Followed by the Friday R&R **
5 December
2004
-
Eric
Breuer (SAMS) Oxygen dynamics in contrasting
marine environments
For
more details on the forthcoming talks, please contact Murray
Roberts or Anuschka Miller
Tel: 01631 559 000 Diary
For
information contact Dr Hamish Mair
or Anuschka
Miller Tel: 01631 559 000
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A
series of monthly talks on marine conservation topics
These
talks are open to the public, admission is free.
FOR
DETAILS OF SEMINARS AND OTHER EVENTS PLEASE CLICK ON THE LOGO ABOVE TO
BROWSE THE WEB PAGES
2 December
2004
Stunning
marine life images – Alex Mustard
6 January
2005
Gorgonian
corals as climate indicators – Zoe Bond
The
Marine
Life Talks are held on the first Thursday of the month at 7.30
pm, please arrive at 7.15 pm to be met in
Reception. Southampton Oceanography Centre is reached via Dock Gate 4 (between
Town Quay and Ocean Village). Please confirm that the talk is taking place
before arriving unannounced.
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Porthleven
(near
Helston),
Cornwall
Aerial
Multimap Location (Link)
The
Silver
Dolphin marine conservation and diving centre is dedicated to the
conservation and protection of all marine life. Click
on the image for the full list of events.
To
help protect the marine environment we run a full training programme of
conservation courses and PADI scuba diving training.
Ideally
placed in the old lifeboat house Porthleven why not come and discover the
wonders of the Cornish coastline and underwater world!
Places
on the courses must be booked in advance
Link
for Activities
DIVE
INTO EARTH DAY ACTIVITIES:
There
will be a charge of £15 for the try dives and £5 for the snorkelling
(if you need to hire snorkelling equipment). For bookings contact
the Silver Dolphin Centre on 01326 572002
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NEW
PUBLICATIONS & WEB PAGES
CD-ROMs
|
Multimedia
Interactive 'Sea Shore Antics' CD. just £9.95 incl.
VAT and uk p&p
This
Sea Shore Antics CD provides, for education or intrigue, an insight into
some of our sea shore UK marine wildlife. Moving and still
images are given in a range of video clips, sequences, time-lapse formats,
and photographs, along with written or narrated features providing information. |
http://www.bugsonfilm.com/shop_main.html
FILMS
18
June 2004
A
new film called
Deep Blue from the makers of the Blue
Planet opens in good cinemas.
Trailer
(Link).
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BOOKS
Marine
fish & invertebrates
of
Northern Europe
Frank
Emil Moen & Erling Svensen
In
May
2004 the English edition of the very popular
Norwegian Marine Fauna (Dyreliv I havet) was published. Prof. David
Bellamy has written the foreword.
More
than one thousand underwater photographs and 608 pages with updated
information on marine fish and invertebrates from nearly all marine phylum
in Northern European waters. The largest newspaper in Norway, Aftenposten
gave the Norwegian edition 6 out of 6 points in a book review. It is in
use at all major higher marine biology studies in Norway.
The
English edition is translated by Prof Fredrik Pleijel and Dr. Sabine Cochrane.
"Marine
fish & invertebrates of Northern Europe” is written for anyone with
a general interest in marine animal life, and who would like to learn more
about their way of life and behaviour, about the role they play in the
drama of nature, and the benefit and nuisance they are to man. The main
portion of the book is arranged in such a way that the different animal
species are presented in a natural, systematic order. More than one thousand
magnificent colour photos of animals taken in their natural environment
support the informative text highlighting the characteristics of each animal.
“Marine fish & invertebrates” covers the North European marine fauna
and is a readable experience in itself. In addition, the book is an important
aid and source of inspiration to all who delight in the ocean with its
hidden life whether if be hobby, study or profession.
The
book is available from Aquapress
in the UK, Skandisk, Inc. USA and
KOM
in Norway .
.
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WEB
SITES
NAUSICAÄ
- French National Sea Experience Center
http://www.nausicaa.fr/links/
NAUSICAÄ
- French National Sea Experience Center, in Boulogne-sur-Mer (Northern
France), is a Science Center entirely dedicated to the relationship between
Mankind and the Sea. Its goal is to incite the general public to discover
the sea and to love it, while raising its awareness on the need for a better
management of marine resources.
Within
the scope of this mission, NAUSICAÄ gives access, on its recently
redesigned web site, to a database containing links to the most interesting
web sites concerning the sea-related topics and marine activities.
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MOLLUSC
WORLD
Published by the Conchological
Society
BMLSS:
Marine Life Articles in Publications (Link)
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SOCIETY
INFORMATION
The
British Marine Life Study Society are responsible for producing the journal
GLAUCUS,
which is the first publication exploring the marine life of the seas surrounding
the British Isles available to the general public.
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Change of EMail
Address
Please
note that the EMail address for messages to the British Marine
Life Study Society has now changed
from
bmlss@compuserve.com
to
Glaucus@hotmail.com
Messages
to the first address will not receive any guarantee of a reply and from
year 2003, the old EMail address is expected to fall into disuse.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Membership 2004
Plans
have not yet been finalised for the publications and subscriptions for
year 2004. An explanation was sent to members just after Christmas.
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