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The
Marine Campaign
There
are many issues impacting on our seas and it is for
this reason that The Wildlife Trust for Lancashire,
Manchester & North Merseyside, and The Wildlife Trusts
Partnership as a whole are campaigning for their protection.
For
more details click here.
The
Great Eggcase Hunt
The
Shark Trust coordinates this national project.
In
recent decades several species of skate and ray around the British
& Irish coasts have dramatically declined in numbers. The empty
eggcases that wash up on to our beaches all year round are an easily
accessible source of information on the whereabouts of skate and
ray nursery grounds.
For
details see http://www.eggcase.org
Jellyfish
Survey
In
an effort to understand the ecology of leatherback turtles - which
visit the Irish Sea every summer pursuing swarms of jellyfish, their
staple diet - the Marine Conservation Society would like you to
help record jellyfish strandings on local beaches and jellyfish
swarms at sea.
See
www.mcsuk.org/marineworld/turtles/jellyfish+survey
for details.
Seasearch
Seasearch
is a national project for volunteer sports divers who have an interest
in what they're seeing under water, want to learn more and want
to help protect the marine environment. The Marine Conservation
Society coordinates it. The main aim is to gather sub-tidal data
and map out the various types of seabed found in the near-shore
zone around the whole of the British Isles. In addition, species
are recorded to establish the richest sites for marine life, where
there are problems and the sites that need protection. Seasearch
also aims to raise awareness of local marine biodiversity amongst
divers and enable them to become involved in conservation-orientated
work.
The
National Seasearch Co-ordinator provides guidance and materials
for Seasearch, but Seasearch projects are led locally by a variety
of organisations, mainly Wildlife Trusts and local authorities.
Around
the Irish Sea, there are currently Seasearch projects based in the
Isle of Man, Northern Ireland, West Scotland, North Wales and West
Wales.
For
further details see http://www.seasearch.org.uk
Seawatch
The
Sea Watch Foundation aims to achieve better conservation of whales,
dolphins and porpoises in the seas around Britain and Ireland by
involving the public in scientific monitoring of populations and
the threats they face, and by the regular production of material
to educate, inform and lobby for better environmental protection.
There
are several regional groups around the Irish Sea.
For more information see http://www.seawatchfoundation.org.uk
Shoresearch
Shoresearch
was developed by the Kent Wildlife Trust and is being taken on by
all the Wildlife Trusts in the South East of England. It has similar
aims to Seasearch but will focus on the inter-tidal rather than
sub-tidal, so there is no need even to get wet - unless it rains!
Unfortunately
The Wildlife Trust for Lancashire, Manchester & North Merseyside
currently has no funding to develop a parallel project around the
shores of Lancashire and North Merseyside. However, we hope to be
looking into the possibilities of a joint project with our colleagues
and partners around the Irish Sea.
If
you'd like more details on the project in southeast
England go to http://www.southeastmarine.org.uk.
MarLIN:
The Marine Life Information Network for Britain and Ireland
For
information about recording marine life generally
around the British Isles see the MarLIN website at
http://www.marlin.ac.uk
Cumbria
Wildlife Trust's South Walney Seal Survey
The
South Walney Seal Group is a group of volunteers led
by Kay Foster. The main aim of the group is to study
the lives and habits of the growing population of
grey seals that live off Walney, the large island
next to Barrow-in-Furness. Particular efforts are
being concentrated on estimating the number of seals,
whether they have pups in the area and to what level
they are disturbed by humans and associated recreational
activities. If you are interested in seals and wish
to join the group, then please contact Kay on 01768
212 522.
For
more information see http://www.wildlifetrust.org.uk/cumbria/Surveys/South%20Walney%20Seal%20Survey.htm
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