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
 
 

12 October 2011
An 17 metre long Sperm Whale, Physeter macrocephalus, was spotted in Kirkwall Bay in the Orkney Isles. There were the usual fears that the deep water whale was sick and may become stranded on the shore. At 1:00 pm the whale was seen swimming into deeper water. 

10 October 2011
 

8 October 2011
The Snakelocks Anemone Shrimp, Periclimenes sagittifer, has now been discovered in Babbacombe Bay, south Devon. This shrimp is symbiotic with the Snakelocks Anemone, Anemonia viridis. They were first discovered around mainland Britain under Swanage Pier in 2007. Before this report, the most northerly sightings were regular reports from around the Channel Islands. 

I  found three Portuguese Man-o'-War, Physalia physalis, loads of By-the-Wind Sailors, Velella velella, Buoy Barnacles, Dosima fascicularis, and Goose Barnacles, Lepas anatifera, at Sennen Cove and Gwynver Beach, Cornwall.

7 October 2011
A juvenile Short-snouted Seahorse, Hippocampus hippocampus, was discovered in the River Thames at Greenwich. This discovery suggests a breeding population.

4 October 2011
A rare Sei Whale, Balaenoptera borealis, that became stranded on a South Uist beach near Gerinish, Outer Hebrides, was out of the water too long and eventually it died. The deep water whale was about 17 metres long. 

2 October 2011
A pelagic string siphonophore (miniature jellyfish-like animal), probably the Agalma elegans, was seen at Evie Bay, Orkney Islands, Scotland. This particular species occurs sporadically around the British coast, usually some distance offshore. This pelagic hydrozoan is rarely recorded rather than rare.

23 September 2011
Another whale was spotted washed up in the Humber estuary near Skeffling on the Holderness coast, a regular stranding point and estuary in which whales can be washed ashore. This 15 metre long whale was still alive and was seen struggling in the mud. It was at first thought to be a Fin Whale, Balaenoptera physalis, but after it died the identification was revised to the rarer Sei Whale, Balaenoptera borealis.

17 September 2011
An alive Sperm Whale, Physeter macrocephalus, was spotted and photographed by Calum MacAskill and his wife in the Sound of Raasay, off the Isle of Skye, the first time one has been spotted off the Scottish island in three years. 

BMLSS Cetaceans

FORUM NEWS

Marine Wildlife of the North-east Atlantic Ocean Mailing Groups

Marine Wildlife of the North-east Atlantic Ocean 
Yahoo Group
New Group: http://uk.groups.yahoo.com/group/Glaucus

British Marine Life Study Society 
Facebook Page:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/glaucus/

This Wall is now working properly and members can now post on it. This is designed for quick less important chatty news items. Photographs can be uploaded quickly which is only possible on the Yahoo Group by going to the web page. 

Images can be uploaded to flickr.
http://www.flickr.com/groups/glaucus/
 

Wet Thumb (Marine Aquariology) Forum Link
 
 

The alien seaweed Japanese Kelp, or Wakame, Undaria pinnatifida, was discovered by Dr Bob Fletcher (University of Portsmouth) on pontoons in Southampton water in the summer of 1996. This Japanese seaweed was first found at Sète on the Mediterranean coast and then later on the French side of the English Channel until 1996 when it was discovered at various places on the English side.

The seaweeds are fertile and there is no reason why it will fail to establish itself as an addition to the British marine fauna. The alga is one of the brown kelps similar to the Dabberlocks, Alaria esculenta. (Report in the Vernal/Summer 1997 Glaucus).

Photographers submitting pictures should indicate if they wish them to be considered for inclusion as confirming permission takes work and time and can delay publication of the news bulletins. 
 

Click on the album for more links (On-line link)

NEW BOOK
 

by Paul Kay & Frances Dipper 
£19.95 incl. p&p
Soft cover

With 256 pages and numerous photographs supported by drawings, this book is the most comprehensive photographic guide to marine fish currently available in the UK. Published for the Marine Conservation Society with support from the Countryside Council for Wales. 

Click on the image to order this book through the Marine Conservation Society

RECOMMENDED PURCHASE *****

July 2010

PS: A second revised edition of the book has been published. 

SEASHORE SAFARIS
 
 
 

Publisher: Graffeg
Publisher's Review (click on this text)
Review by the City and County of Swansea

This is the book I should have written (and I dare say a few others as well) and is a much needed introduction to the world of the seashore and the hobby of rockpooling. It is a photographic guide to most of the common species encountered which is much appreciated as newcomers and even experienced rockpoolers will try and match up what they have seen to a visual image (and photographs work better than line drawings) and this will usually get them the correct species, (unless there are two very alike species and then you will need a specialist identification guide like the Collins Guide to the Seashore).

However, the seashore is a rich and interesting habitat with a myriad of species and 225 pages of this large pocket guide are comprehensively covered to suit the enthusiast.

Extract from the foreword by Keith Hiscock:
"Being able to names to what you see and, better still, to use your observations to add to our knowledge about the natural world is what this book is about."

But the book for a popular audience is more than this. It starts from the assumption that the parents and teachers and older children are unfamiliar with the seashore environment, so the

1. Getting started
explains about the tides (very briefly: a detailed explanation can be in chapter 2) and the equipment you may need, where and how to look for the seashore critters (my term).
2. Living between the tides
explains about the dynamic nature of the littoral environment and the variations on different coasts. It also introduces the explorer to a few technical terms which are further explored in
3. Zonation
which is a rather important explanation to on what part of the shore what animals and seaweeds are to be discovered and why
4. Habitats
Even between the zones the geography of the seashore varies and this chapter explains what habitats what type of creatures
5. Beachcombing
This is the scavenger's first introduction to the see what the sea has deposited on the strandline complete with an excellent quick guide to the common shells and other treasures
6. Animal Life
The large animal life section is structured roughly by phyla (major groups of animals) ignoring for the most part the specialist microscopic studies. Each animal group is given a brief description including behavioural characteristics. Each animal is given a common name and the important scientific name (because the common names can vary in different localities and in different books) with a photograph, brief written description, habitat preferences and field notes.
"Did you know?
Male crabs have a narrow 'v' shaped tail with 5 joints and in females the tail is wider with 7 joints."
Fish are the most interesting discoveries for many of the fledgling rockpoolers. Most of the common species are included but a frequently encountered species like the Rock Goby, Gobius paganellus, has been omitted.
7. Seaweeds
In contrast to the fish the common macroalgae are well covered.
8. Conservation
This is a good section encouraging participants to take an active interest, how the public can help and a comprehensive list of where to report their findings.
9. Further Information
With a book list and a list of organisations and their web pages, a comprehensive glossary and an index, this has the hook that could result in a lifetime interest in the seashore.

Now why would anybody want to go to Serengeti when we have so much of interest nearer to home?

RECOMMENDED PURCHASE *****

Not just a cookery book: you have to go down to the shore and catch or collect the food yourself. The 240 page hardback book (with an index) is exceptionally well produced in quality of the binding, paper as well as the quality of writing, information and clear useful colour photographs. It is well organised into nine chapters:

Starting Out:  Conservation and Equipment, including the first paper published instructions on how to construct a shrimp net (push-net). 

Foraging:  Lots of useful and essential information about the tides, weather, safety and what to wear. 

Rule Book: This is the bravest inclusion. John Wright attempts (better than anyone so far) to explain the rules, law and ethics of seashore collection, what you are allowed and not allowed to do. It is worth buying the book for this chapter alone.

The Flowering Plants
The Seaweeds
The Molluscs
The Crustaceans

All the expected species and some unlikely edible candidates are included and each is given two pages. Very informative and lots of information I did not already know. John Wright conducted his research first hand and we shrimped together on Southwick Beach with Peter Talbot-Elsden (as shown in my photograph, not in the book).

The Recipes:  Well I would omit the chilli in the Potted Shrimp. After collecting the food, I am usually a wee bit tired and this chapter should be for your partner. Let me know how you get on?

The home-made shrimp net on page 17 is an identical design to mine, the one used by John Wright before he made his own on our expeditions at Southwick, and the one used by Charlie Dimmick on River Walks filmed on nearby Lancing beach.

Kimmeridge Tidings

Autumn 2009
http://www.dorsetwildlifetrust.org.uk/c2/uploads/tidingsautumn09web.pdf

Up to date with all the latest happenings at our Purbeck Marine Wildlife Reserve in Kimmeridge.
 

VIVARIUM
by Peter Stiles
Publisher: Museum of Barnstaple and North Devon

Philip Henry Gosse was a popular naturalist who moved to Victorian Ilfracombe and wrote his natural science book ‘A Naturalist’s Rambles on the Devonshire Coast’. He later designed the first public aquarium, which opened in London. His activities also attracted other naturalists, including Charles Darwin and novelist George Eliot.

This book celebrates the link between Philip Henry Gosse and his rockpool adventures in Devon and contains lots of information about the life of this self-taught Victorian scientist and writer.

in conjunction with an Exhibition that finished on 25 April 2009.
 

Marine Fisheries Science Yearbook  2008/2009

Publisher:  defra

Sharks in British Seas Richard Peirce 138 pages, colour illustrations, line drawings, colour & b/w photos. Lots of newspaper reports. Publisher:  Shark Cornwall Softcover | 2008 | £9.99 ISBN: 978-0-955869402

Seashore by Lucy Beckett-Bowman Consultant: Andy Horton Usborne Publishing   £3.99 Usborne Beginners Series Level One (very young children) ISBN 978-0-7460-8864-7 BMLSS Notes for a Primary School Teacher

Whales & Dolphins
of the European Atlantic
The Bay of Biscay, English Channel, Celtic Sea and coastal SW Ireland
by Dylan Walker and Graeme Cresswell
with the illustrations by Robert Still
WILDGuides  2008
£ 12.00 (includes standard UK P&P)
ISBN:  978-1-903657-31-7

This is the second fully revised and updated edition of this comprehensive guide to the identification of whales, dolphins and porpoises (collectively known as cetaceans) in the European Atlantic. Until very recently, most researchers and whale-watchers were unaware of the great variety of cetaceans that can be seen so close to the shores of western Europe. Indeed, it is only during the last decade, when detailed cetacean surveys have been carried out in earnest, that we have discovered how important this area is for cetacean biodiversity.

This field guide describes all of the 31 species of whale, dolphin and porpoise that have occurred in the European Atlantic.
 

BMLSS Cetacean Book Reviews

 
The Gulf Stream
by Bruno Voituriez
Publisher:  UNESCO 
ISBN:  92-3-103995-4 
222 pages, figures, glossary, bibliography

The Gulf Stream
Amid contemporary scenarios of potential climatic catastrophes and global warming that might be imagined to bring a new ice age, the powerful image of the Gulf Stream rising from the Florida Straits and flowing to the north Atlantic inevitably provokes questions about its ecological significance and whether it might ever stop.
 

Coastal Plankton
Photo Guide for European Seas

by Otto Larink & Wilfried Westheide
reviewed by Wim van Egmond
 
 
 

Seashore (Collins New Naturalist) (Paperback) by Peter Hayward Collins 2004 ISBN:  0-00-220031-7 Amazon Web Site

Paperback. Pp 288. Colour & b/w photographs, illustrations, charts, maps and bibliography. Fine copy. "New Naturalist" Seashore is a comprehensive, authoritative account of the natural history of the seashore.
 

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