News

New Management Scheme for Berwickshire, Northumberland and North Tyneside

The latest version of our Management Scheme is now available online HERE

The new Scheme covers all of the inshore Marine Protected Areas found between Fast Castle Head in Scotland and the River Tyne in England and replaces the last Scheme, last updated in 2014.

Cover image: Paula Lightfoot

New YouTube Channel

The Marine Nature Partnership now has a Channel on YouTube 

Our channel is currently hosting content put out as part of Eider Duck Day on the 20th but additional material will be added over the next few months. Current videos include:

• Presentation from Paul Morrison (RSPB) on Northumberland’s Eider Ducks
• Presentation from Jessica Turner on St Cuthbert and Anglo-Saxon Northumberland
• Presentation from Fiona Greenwald (ERIC North East) talking about the importance of biological recording
• Katherine Dunsford (Space for Shorebirds) talking about bird disturbance
• Catherine Scott (Natural England) talking about the Berwick to St Mary’s Marine Conservation Zone

The address for our YouTube Channel is https://bit.ly/2OGwkLX

Photo Credit: Tom Cadwallender

Latest Progress Report Published

Our lastest progress report is now available HERE The report covers the period from 2016 to March 2020 and gives details of the changes that have taken place in the partnership during that time.

Contents of the report include:

• Key changes since the last report
• New designations
• Partnership activity
• Update on site condition
• Progress towards achieving a well managed network of MPAs

Independent review backs introduction of Highly Protected Marine Areas

An independent review led by former Fisheries Minister Richard Benyon, and published today on World Ocean Day, is calling for the introduction of Highly Protected Marine Areas in English waters. The review was commissioned on last year’s world ocean day by then Environment Secretary Michael Gove as part of the Government’s drive to protect our waters. Copies of the review can be downloaded at https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/890484/hpma-review-final-report.pdf

These highly protected marine areas would enable a greater recovery of the marine ecosystem and enhance the Government’s commitment to a national ‘Blue Belt’, which has already seen an area of 92,000 square km protected – 40% of English seas.

The UK currently has a range of protections in place through a network of 355 Marine Protected Areas, which offer protections for a designated feature or habitat within their boundaries. Highly Protected Marine Areas would go further by taking a ‘whole site approach’ and only permitting certain activities within their boundaries such as vessel transit, scuba diving and kayaking. Activities that could have a damaging effect on habitats or wildlife, including fishing, construction and dredging would be banned. The review claims the introduction of such areas could lead to a significant biodiversity boost for our seas by giving our marine life the best chance to recover and thrive.

The review, which was supported by a panel of independent experts, also sheds light on the potential social and economic benefits of introducing highly protected marine areas. These benefits include increased tourism and recreational activities, opportunities for scientific research and education, and positive effects for human health. It also suggests that any potential fishing restriction could be counterbalanced by a stronger and biodiverse marine wildlife – with potential long-term benefits for the fishing industry from providing areas where sea life can develop and breed undisturbed.

Three Marine Protected Areas: Flamborough Head, Lundy Island and the Medway Estuary currently have in place ‘no take zones‘ which prohibit all methods of fishing.

The panel has made a number of recommendations which will now be considered by Government with a formal response made in due course.

Key recommendations include:

• the introduction of Highly Protected Marine Areas (HPMAs) within the existing network of Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) to allow for the full protection and recovery of marine ecosystems
• a “whole site approach” to protect all species and habitats within the HPMA boundaries
• potential sites should be identified on the basis of ecological principles. Once these are met, the selection of sites should seek to minimise any negative effects on stakeholders. To do this, Government should agree the identification and regulation of these sites in partnership with sea users
• ‘blue carbon’ habitats are identified for protection during the HPMA site selection process to help combat climate change

The background to the Review can be viewed at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/highly-protected-marine-areas-hpmas-review-2019

Online Marine and Coastal Activities While Social Distancing

During the present Covid 19 pandemic the most important message to all of us is to #StayAtHome and to #StaySafe. Visits to the coast are off for the majority of us but the good news is that there are ways to enjoy marine life without leaving the house. We have listed some of the available resources below. This is very much a work in progress so if you come across any good websites or initiatives  that have been missed off then please let us know.

Citizen Science Activities

A great way to experience the natural world remotely while also helping with marine conservation is to visit the Zooniverse website Describing itself as people-powered research, Zooniverse contains details of almost a hundred activity research projects that are seeking participants to help out. No specialist skills or knowledge is required. These cover a range of topics from language and historic through physics, astronomy and nature. Current coastal and marine projects include:

Beluga Bits were people are asked to examine underwater photographs of wild beluga to help scientists their age, sex and group size

Mantatee Chats where you can help with the identification and classification of manatee calls

Invader ID where you can help track changes in coastal environments by identifying marine invertebrates

If you want to help out with projects that are not marine-related then there are also plenty of recording schemes that can participate in from your own backyard. These include the BTO Garden BirdWatch, the BSBI Garden Wildflower Hunt, and the Garden Butterfly Survey. You can also submit wildlife records from your garden or during your daily allowed exercise via the ERIC North East recording portal.

Virtual Wildlife Experiences

Scottish Natural Heritage have eight virtual dives which can be viewed online as well as a playlist of 33 videos illustrating Scotland’s seas.  Excepts include footage of seals, basking sharks, sea caves, and diving guillemots at Petticowick near St Abbs.

Natural England has provided a playlist of 32 videos from English waters, including an underseas tour from Lindisfarne to Spurn Point.

A number of locations broadcast live footage of wildlife via webcams. Examples can be found at the websites of The Wildlife Trusts and The Scottish Wildlife Trust

Kittiwake Cam:  The River Tyne is home to the most inland breeding population of kittiwakes in the world. The birds send the winter months at sea before returning to breed on buildings and ledges between February and August. The Durham Wildlife Trust’s Kittiwake Cam stream live footage of nesting birds from a ledge at the BALTIC Centre for Contemporary Art.

The National Marine Aquarium in Plymouth has been live streaming events via its Facebobok page. Recordings of these can be found on their YouTube channel, including this footage of stingray feeding.

Further afield, the Monterey Bay Aquarium in California has a number of live camera feeds featuring kelp forests, moon jellyfish and sharks, among others.

Encounter Edu offer a number of multimedia collections which include a coral reef safari and an opportunity to explore an undersea mountain from a submarine.

For birdwatchers (or aspiring birdwatchers), a virtual bird walk along the Tyne Estuary is available from the Old Low Light Heritage Centre. The walk is led by David Hirst and includes sighting of eider, turnstone and reshank.

Educational Resources

The Marine Conservation Society is running a series of Cool Seas Webinars via Zoom. These are aimed at ages up to 11 and will last approximately 30-45 minutes. The webinars only be available to the first 100 attendees and you must pre-register in advance. If you are unable to join live then webinar recordings are available afterwards on the MCS’s YouTube channel.

Marine Scotland has provide links to some of their marine themed resources, including a virtual tour round one of their research vessels.

For adults, a number of free Massive Open Open Courses (MOOCs) are available to sign up to:

The University of Southampton offer a course entitled Exploring Our Ocean via FutureLearn. Topics covered include ocean biodiversity, ocean currents, and human impacts on the ocean.

The One Planet, One Ocean course from SDG Academy is self-paced and open till September 15th 2020. Modules include marine life and minerals, marine ecosystems, and oceans and climate.