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FINAL REPORT Plymouth Hoe Bioblitz 2016 – Final Report 0 “Thanks to all the professional people volunteering their time in arranging a splendid learning opportunity” Michele & Nicholas De Beer Image Paul Naylor Plymouth Hoe Bioblitz 2016 – Final Report 1 “Just to say thanks a million, we had a wonderful time, learnt lots & met some super people including lovely MBA staff - always friendly & generous.” Paula Ferris (Coastwise) Image Paul Naylor Plymouth Hoe Bioblitz 2016 Introduction A Bioblitz is a multidisciplinary survey of biodiversity in a set place at a set time. The main aim of the event is to make a snapshot of species present in an area and ultimately, to raise public awareness of biodiversity, science and conservation. This year’s Bioblitz was held in Plymouth, Devon on Plymouth Hoe and waterfront (Figure 1). Surveying took place from 10am on Friday 14th October until 3pm on Saturday 15th October. Over the course of the 24+ hours of the event, 12 timetabled, public-participation activities took place including scientific surveys and guided walks. More than 400 people attended, including 200 local school children, and over 200 volunteers, experts, and members of the public. A total of 1024 species have been identified* from close to 2000 recordings. The event was the 8th marine/coastal Bioblitz to be organised by the Marine Biological Association (MBA) with partners. This year the MBA led in partnership with Plymouth University Marine Institute and received financial support from Wright & Owen Electricals and Collard Construction, with all organisations contributing vital funding and support for the project overall. We are also very grateful for a private donation from Colin Kilvington. The event was also supported by 31 organisations and local businesses (listed at the end of this report) that led activities and along with many individuals, supported the event by giving up their time and loaning equipment including loan and demonstration of state-of-the-art microscopy equipment provided by Information in Images. Books were also generously donated by local publishers Wild Nature Press and Paul and Teresa Naylor, which were used as prizes in our ‘guess the number of species competition’ and BioBlitz Passport draw. *=Species records still being added /verified total as of 01/11/16. Plymouth Hoe and The Citadel Hill Laboratory (Image: Jonathan Brooks) Plymouth Hoe Bioblitz 2016 – Final Report 1 The Survey Area The survey area was located around our Base Camp at the Citadel Hill Laboratory, including approximately a one kilometre stretch of coast between Queen Anne’s Battery and West Hoe. This included Sutton Harbour, Teats Hill, Plymouth Hoe, The Citadel, West Hoe and out towards Drakes Island. The survey area included parts of the Plymouth Sound and Estuaries Special Area of Conservation (SAC), home to a rich and diverse intertidal and sub-tidal flora and fauna, including some nationally scarce species. The survey area also included several urban sites, not often surveyed, which proved to contain a high diversity of wildlife. Map of the Survey Area Plymouth Hoe Bioblitz 2016 – Final Report 2 Base Camp and Activities Base Camp was set up in the Marine Life and Environmental Sciences Resource Centre at the Citadel Hill Laboratory, which comes well equipped for such events with access to power, wifi, microscopes, sea water, stand space, reference materials, survey equipment, food and protection from any unforeseen weather. 25 local organisations and 100 experts and volunteers joined the event, displaying information on stands, and providing interactive activities for members of the public and school groups. This included Information in Images who brought with them two public use discovery microscopes and TV screens that allowed anyone to magnify their finds and see them up close and personal. Day 1 School Activities – On Friday, the Bioblitz was host to over 180 primary school students from 6 local schools and a further 20 home- schooled children and their families. Activities were planned around a timetabled carousel with 2 school groups spending most of their day doing activities at Teats Hill with Plymouth City Council and The National Marine Aquarium before joining the other school groups here at the Citadel Hill Laboratory. Introducing school children to life on the shore (Image: Pete Thursfield) The pupils joined experts on seashore safaris, bug hunts and plant walks, and were invited to visit stands and participate in activities at base camp. We were very pleased with the feedback we received from the schools, both from the children and supporting staff, we even had several students return the following day to get involved with more bioblitz activities. (From left to right) Plankton netting with MBA and SAHFOS staff (Image Johnathan Brooks), School students collecting plant samples and group welcome (Image: Pete Thursfield). Citadel Wildlife Walk – This walk was a chance to look around the Royal Citadel and was fully booked with attendees, including lichen, invertebrate and plant experts. Notable species on this walk included: Meadow pipit (Anthus pratensis), common puffball (Lycoperdon perlatum) as well as Plymouth Hoe Bioblitz 2016 – Final Report 3 healthy diversity of grassland species such as Bird’s-foot-trefoil (Lotus corniculatus) and Black Medic (Medicago lupulina). Plankton Netting – Attended by more than 50 people, plankton nets were taken down to the foreshore and used to collect plankton samples. Finds were then brought back to basecamp to be identified under microscopes and displayed on TV screens under the supervision of staff from the MBA and SAHFOS. Trap Walk and Talk – Moth and invertebrate traps were set up at various locations around base camp and along the Citadel walls. Traps were left overnight to be collected the following day. Night time Crabbing – A popular activity, particularly with university students, crab nets were used over the side of the Elphinstone Car Park towards the Barbican to see how many crabs could be collected. This followed the protocols being trialled for the Crab Watch initiative, part of the EU funded Sea Change project. Several species of crab were caught, as well as other marine creatures including a sea scorpion (Taurulus bubalis) and several common prawns (Palaemon serratus). Night time Rock-pooling – Over 40 people attended the night time rock-pooling session, fully kitted out with high-visibility jackets and torches to discover some rocky shore creatures. UV lights were also used to observe fluorescence (glowing) of species. Data entry & Identification – For those wanting to burn the midnight oil, the labs and resource centre were open through the night for use of the microscopes to identify species and to enter the records that were collected throughout the day. A small group of dedicated naturalists worked through the night peering down microscopes! Other activities throughout the day included: Seine netting at Teats Hill, sample analysis from Queen Anne’s Battery, scuba diving, snorkel safari, Sea Watch ocean vigil, family ‘mini missions’ and guess the number of species competition. Long spined sea scorpion caught during the night time crabbing session Image Jack Sewell Plymouth Hoe Bioblitz 2016 – Final Report 4 Day 2 Dawn Bird Walk – Although just a small group of early risers, the birders still managed to add some species to their lists including a Common Shag (Phalacrocora aristotelis) and Buzzard (Buteo buteo). Moth Trap Reveal – Traps were checked and taken down. Because of the lateness in the year of the Bioblitz (and a short storm at 02:00, which blew away the catering marquee!), it was a little too cold for some moths, but we still had several interesting species, including a new record for Devon (Opogona omoscopa). Bug Hunt & Trap Collection – Members of the public enjoyed finding out what the traps had captured overnight, as well as looking along the Citadel wall for any invertebrates that might be hiding in cracks and crevices. Several beetle and spiders were recorded, as well as some snail species including the common, but distinctive silky snail (Ashfordia granulata) that has a fine layer of hairs on its shell and is one of only two ‘hairy’ snail species in the UK). Shore Safari – The second shore survey with members of the public and volunteers. This activity also included a fish survey, in which helpers and observers gathered to see experts use a seine net and to help sort through and identify the catch. This is always one of the most popular sessions and this year was no exception. Lichen & Plant Walk – A small, enthusiastic group braved the weather and returned with some interesting lichen specimens to study under microscopes and do analysis with chemicals. Final Species Count and Competition Winners – The event finished on Saturday 16th October with a brief note to thank all attendees and announce the winners of the ‘guess the number of species’ and mini mission competitions. Prizes for the competitions were kindly donated by Wild Nature Press and Marine Photo. The day finished with a total of 748 species entered into the system, with recording sheets and data from notebooks still to add. Specimens of polychaete worms and a brittle star collected from Plymouth Hoe Foreshore (Images: Alix Harvey, MBA) Plymouth Hoe Bioblitz 2016 – Final Report 5 Data Collection and Results Data was collected using paper recording forms for ad-hoc sightings and organised activities, as well as via the IRecord app, a new smartphone tool that allows a person to create an activity and add records with photographs directly to it. This new tool was utilised by a few of the local experts and the data team and allowed all results to be checked against the Natural History Museum UK species list, speeding up the data entry process. A total of 1904 records were added to the IRecord database with 1023 different species identified (see figure 5 & 6).
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  • Anemone Anemonia Sulcata. Living There Or Just Passing By?

    Anemone Anemonia Sulcata. Living There Or Just Passing By?

    SCIENTIA MARINA 71(2) June 2007, 287-292, Barcelona (Spain) ISSN: 0214-8358 Decapod crustaceans associated with the snakelock anemone Anemonia sulcata. Living there or just passing by? RICARDO CALADO, GISELA DIONÍSIO and MARIA TERESA DINIS CCMAR Universidade do Algarve, Campus de Gambelas, 8000-117 Faro, Portugal. E-mail: [email protected] SUMMARY: The present work identifies the decapod crustaceans that associate with Anemonia sulcata on the southwest- ern Atlantic coast of Portugal and characterises their host use pattern. It determines whether the anemone is monopolised by any species, resulting in the exclusion of conspecifics or other decapods and, under laboratory conditions, it evaluates the degree of association between each species and A. sulcata. From all sampled anemones, 79% harboured at least 1 decapod crustacean, with the majority displaying either one or two specimens (32 and 24%, respectively). The most abundant species were the shrimp Periclimenes sagittifer and the crab Inachus phalangium (representing 36 and 31% of collected specimens, respectively), which displayed lasting associations and were commonly recorded among the tentacles of the host. The species Eualus occultus, E. complex cranchii, Clibanarius erythropus, Maja brachydactyla, Pilumnus hirtellus and Polybius (Necora) puber displayed short-term associations, were mainly present on the substratum near the base, and avoided the ten- tacles of A. sulcata. Periclimenes sagittifer and I. phalangium were only recorded alone or in heterosexual pairs, appearing to efficiently defend their host against conspecifics. The majority of recorded species only seem to temporarily associate with A. sulcata, in order to seek protection from predators when other shelters are unavailable. Keywords: Anemonia sulcata, associative behaviour, decapod crustaceans.