The Big Seaweed Search - helping out during lockdown

Here at MCS, we really appreciate all the help and support that our volunteers can give us. This year has been a bit different, but there are still ways that volunteers can help support our work. Sea Champion Sally tells us how she has been involved with validating data for the Big Seaweed Search.

Hi there! I’m Sally, a Sea Champion, (fair-weather) Seasearch diver and a marine biology placement year student working with the Marine Conservation Society and the Natural History Museum for the Big Seaweed Search project. (Yes, that is my seaweed-ing suit for anyone who’s wondering!)

So, a bit of background to me and why I get to tell you about the Big Seaweed Search. I became a member of the MCS in 2017 having spoken to volunteers at their stand at the ExCel dive show, but I only really got involved with MCS when I got to Plymouth University. There I met lots of brilliant and likeminded people, whereby I got roped in (in a good way) to become a Seasearch diver, something I had wanted to get into as soon as I moved down to the coast!

It was around that time that I met up with Jules, the (brilliant) Sea Champion coordinator for the South West, as she was recruiting Sea Champions to work with the University. As we were talking she mentioned the Big Seaweed Search project, something I hadn’t heard about before. Although not my primary focus of studies, seaweed is immensely interesting (well to me at least!), so I asked if there was anything I could do to get involved. Yes, was the short answer!

Jules set up a dialog between me and (the wonderful) Professor Juliet Brodie, who pretty much runs the project, to discuss what I could do to help out with it. Turns out they were looking for someone to volunteer and do some data analysis of the collected data from the past four years. To me this sounded like the perfect placement opportunity during this pandemic and a great way to improve my data skills, so I asked if I would be suitable? Well, I must have said something right as I’m now on the team and doing my placement with them!

“But Sally,” I hear you ask. “What is the Big Seaweed Search and how can I get involved?” The Big Seaweed Search is a citizen science project, so it relies on citizen scientists (that’s you!) to go out to the coast and take a survey of the seaweed that’s there. All the information can be found on the BSS website (http://bigseaweedsearch.org/), including a guide for how to run your survey, what 14 species of seaweed you will be looking out for and how to identify them. There’s also a printable recording form, so you don’t have to memorise every species you see.

My job now is to look through all the past surveys that have been done, making sure that the data entries are correct by verifying photos that are sent in with the survey. Then analysing the data against three environmental changes: sea temperature rise, ocean acidification and the spread of non-native species, to see if they are having an impact on our seaweed habitats.

This analysis will hopefully garner some interesting results that we hope will be able to be published in a paper. It will be a great show for all the hard work the surveyors have put into the project already!

If you’re a Sea Champion already, in the July E-Bulletin for the South West there’s an article about News, Feedback and a Data Request for the BSS, asking that if you have taken part in a survey before, check that you uploaded your photos, as this is the only way we (…well I) can verify the seaweeds that you’ve recorded!

If you’re now just really eager to get out to your local beach and do some citizen science (which I hope you are!), then all you need to do is go onto the Big Seaweed Search website (http://bigseaweedsearch.org/), download (and print) the guide and recording form, grab a pencil and your camera and/or smartphone, get down to the beach and have fun!

Happy recording everyone!

Seashore citizen science for Duke of Edinburgh award

At MCS, we value all the contributions that volunteers give to our work. Citizen science projects are a great way to support the conservation of the marine environment and they help us to understand some of the impacts of climate change. Anneliese, one of our Sea Champions, has been taking part in three citizen science projects as part of her Duke of Edinburgh award. She tells us more about what she has been getting up to on our coastlines...

I am a second year Environmental Science student studying at The University of Plymouth. I am currently undertaking my Gold Duke of Edinburgh award and a requirement for this is to complete 18 months of volunteering for a minimum of an hour a week. My university was offering a volunteering fair where I met Jules Agate (Sea Champions Volunteer and Community Engagement Manager). Jules explained to me what volunteering positions were available for me to help with on a long-term scale. That’s when I heard about citizen science projects ‘The Big Seaweed Search’, ‘Marine Invaders’ and ‘CrabWatch’. The Big Seaweed Search involves undertaking shore surveys to record different types of seaweeds to help scientific research. These seaweeds range from species such as Serrated Wrack, Channelled Wrack and Coral Weed (just a few examples). 

 

Coral Weed found at Wembury Bay

Edible Crab found at Jennycliff

Serrated Wrack found at Mousehole Harbour

Channelled Wrack found in the Yealm

Identification guides for all species, as well as recording forms are all available online at http://bigseaweedsearch.org/. You also input your collected data and photos into an online database via the link too. Its super-simple once you know what you’re doing and a great excuse to get outside! There are some days of course when its unsafe to venture too close to the sea, meaning a lay day or two may be required, if there are health and safety risks. Obviously, tides can also affect the timings of your searches if your destination involves a rocky shore. That’s where the Marine Biological Association project, ‘CrabWatch’ comes in!

CrabWatch is a hunt for different species of crabs that can be surveyed at a rocky shore, off a jetty etc. This means that when the tide is too high to survey a rocky shore, CrabWatch can be adapted when the tide is high by crabbing from a pier or a harbour wall. Again, all ID guides and recording sheets are available here: www.mba.ac.uk/crabwatch/.

Additionally, ‘Marine Invaders’ is another scheme developed through the Capturing Our Coast partnership involving the Marine Conservation Society and Marine Biological Association, amongst others. Non-native species are searched for and assessed such as the Pacific Oyster compared to the European Oyster. The same method is used where-by you visit the rocky shore or sea wall etc with your ID guide and look out for the species on the recording form: www.mba.ac.uk/marineinvaders/.

All three of the above are super exciting and fun to get involved in. Not only do you help out a great cause by being a citizen scientist, but you also get to develop an array of skills ranging from species identification through to even noticing trends from shore to shore yourself (once you’ve had a go a few times). I would definitely recommend getting in touch with the Marine Conservation Society (who are super friendly and helpful) to get all the advice you need to become an MCS Sea Champion and citizen scientist on the shore!