Fine Scaling of the Marine Management Area project First inshore expedition report Southern expedition on board of the Golden Fleece

Author: Dr Ander M. de Lecea, Project Manager

South Atlantic Environmental Research Institute

Fine Scaling of the Marine Management Areas Project (DPLUS071)

Contents Logistics 2 Vessel 2 Dates 2 Team members 2 Main equipment 3 Priority goals brief description (see objectives section below for full details) 3 Overview 3 Objectives 4 Photographic journey of the expedition 4 Methodology 5 Survey sites 5 Non-SCUBA surveys 6 Environmental data 6 Side-scan sonar 6 Deep-water Camera 6 SCUBA survey 7 Mobile animal counts 7 Quadrant photography 7 JNCC habitat types 7 Collaborators 8 Preliminary Analyses 9 Oceanographic data 9 Side-scan sonar 9 Deep-water camera 10 SCUBA transects 11 Mobile Animal Surveys 11 Photographic quadrats 13 Data 15 Acknowledgments 15 Bibliography 15 Appendix 1: Event log of the expedition 17 Appendix II: A photo journey to the expedition 21

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Fine Scaling of the Marine Management Areas Project (DPLUS071)

Logistics Vessel Golden Fleece – Skipper Dion Poncet

Dates 15th April 2019 – 22nd April 2019

Team members ● Golden Fleece Crew: Dion Poncet and Julliette Hennequin ● Steve Cartwright (SMSG/Contractor) – Expedition leader ● Ander de Lecea (SAERI/MMA Project Manager) – Scientific Leader ● Marina Costa (SAERI/MMA Project Officer) ● Ness Smith (SAERI/Volunteer) – Dive officer ● Thomas Ferrugia (Fisheries Department/Volunteer) ● Lauren Shea (SAERI/Intern)

Team members of the expedition

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Main equipment ● MMA project: o Conductivity, Temperature, Depth (CTD) + fluorometer o Deep-water camera o Side-scan sonar (stations to be decided) ● SMSG: o Underwater cameras (1 x macro and 2 x wide angle) o Various diving equipment items

Priority goals brief description (see objectives section below for full details) ● High priority work areas were: o To obtain, with divers, quadrat photography and video of the sea floor o To obtain photography from >30m using the deep-water camera ● Medium priority o CTD deployment ● Medium-low priority o Side-scan sonar o Sample collection (benthic organisms, algae, genetics)

Overview This was the first inshore work conducted towards the Fine Scaling of the Marine Management Areas (MMA) project. This Darwin-Plus funded project (DPLU071) lead by the South Atlantic Environmental Research Institute (SAERI) builds on previous work of the Marine Spatial Planning within the Falkland Islands, which was first explored during 2014-2018. Following its successful conclusion Falkland Island Government appointed SAERI to undertake a second phase (MSP Phase II; July 2017 to December 2017) which covered three key aspects including an Assessment of Fishing Closure Areas as Sites (AFCAS) as potential marine management areas (MMAs) against international criteria for Marine Protected Areas. Three areas were identified including the (offshore), Beauchêne Island and the inshore waters. In order to consider their implementation, the current Darwin-Plus MMA project sets out to conduct key baseline work required for their effective design and management.

The current expedition aimed at expanding on the inshore knowledge gathered over the years by SAERI and the Shallow Marine Surveys Group (SMSG). One of the goals of the expedition was to collect benthic data in the southern part of the Falkland Islands, including Bird Island, an area highlighted in the AFCAS report. The expedition served as a twofold; on the one hand, it helped the MMA project to gather subtidal data in different regions of the island, including those highlighted in the AFCAS report. This will allow the project to obtain a more in depth picture of benthic diversity patterns along the island shallow marine waters. On the other hand, it allowed us to increase on the data gathered over the years by SMSG. Such combination of effort, could work towards allowing us to understand the benthic diversity baseline around the islands.

Prior to the current expedition, there was little benthic information available for the region surveyed here. In the north of Eagle Passage (Fig. 1), some data has been gathered for a prospective salmon aquaculture facility. However, the data collected is mainly from the deeper regions of the passage, where the currents

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Fine Scaling of the Marine Management Areas Project (DPLUS071) are faster, while little to no information existed prior to this expedition from the subtidal region. Similarly, the Arch Islands were surveyed over a decade ago by SMSG, and back then only semi-quantitative data were collected and not compatible with transect data collect from other areas, while Bird Island has been surveyed in the past, but no transect data were collected. As such, the gathered data will help towards our understanding of benthic biodiversity patterns within the subtidal region of the islands.

Objectives ● The main objective of the expedition was to collect benthic information for the MMA project of areas not well studies previously by SMSG. This should fill in knowledge gaps for the benthic ecosystem distribution around the Falklands Islands. ● In line with these, the objectives were: o To survey the marine flora and fauna of Eagle Passage, Arch Islands and Bird Island quantitatively and qualitatively in order to make direct comparisons, at a community level, with other sites surveyed on previous SMSG expeditions o To gain information on species distributions and relative abundance, geographically, around the Falkland Islands o To collect deep-water photography and video in order to further understand biodiversity below diving depth o To collect side-scan data in order to understand seafloor sedimentary composition o To collect physico-chemical data using a CTD o To collect specimens for the reference collection housed in the Fisheries Department o To collect specimens for collaborators from other institutions

Photographic journey of the expedition For those interested on knowing more about what life was aboard of the Golden Fleece, or seeing the pictures of the different regions of the Falkland Islands, please go to Appendix III. Alternatively, a popular blog can be read here: https://www.south-atlantic-research.org/diving-from-east-to-west-falkland- aboard-the-golden-fleece-april-15-22-2019/

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Fine Scaling of the Marine Management Areas Project (DPLUS071)

Methodology Survey sites Under the Conservation of Wildlife and Nature Ordinance 1999: Section 9, all sampling and collection conducted during this field trip was done under the Research Licence 48/2018 issues by the Environment Officer, Falkland Islands Government.

A total of 15 sites were surveyed using SCUBA (Fig. 1). At each site two different depths were sampled, these were shallower than 10m (‘shallow’ transect) and deeper than 10m (‘deep’ transect) spanning the range available, depending on the profile. Additionally, in four stations a dive team was dedicated to either animal collection or macro photography. A full expedition even log is available in Appendix I

In addition to the SCUBA effort, the deep-water camera was deployed 56 times, with depths ranging from 19.7m to 49m (with one trial station being at 13m). Over 14 kms of side-scan data were also collected, these happened in Arch Island and Eagle Passage, while due to weather none happened around Bird Island.

CTD data collection only occurred in one location due to instrument malfunction.

Figure 1. Sampling area location.

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Non-SCUBA surveys Environmental data The aim was to collect CTD data with fluorimeter data using a ValePort FastCTD. However, the instrument did not function correctly during the expedition and consequently, except for one location, no environmental data was collected.

Side-scan sonar A total of 14km were scan in the Eagle Passage as well as in the Arch Islands. No side-scan sonar was conducted on Bird Island due to weather conditions. For this, a Tritech StarFish 452F Pro System was used.

Deep-water Camera A deep-water camera was used in stations deeper than permitted diver depths. This consisted of a GitUP in a GroupBin Passive Video Basic Underwater Housing kit, with two programmable underwater video lights, Nautilux, all housings are rated to a depth of 1750m. In order to deploy the camera, a locally based engineer had to assemble a frame and tripod legs, which would allow the camera to sit 80cm above the seafloor, photographing an area of 1.0 x 1.0 m, with the legs sitting on the seafloor at 1.22m from each other. This expedition was the first chance to test the system. The camera was deployed a total of 56 times.

Figure 2. Deep-water camera assembling and final product on board of the ship and under the water. Lobster krill picture on the bottom right is an example of a picture taken by the camera at 49 m depth.

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SCUBA survey In addition to the fieldwork risk assessment, for all SCUBA surveys, the SMSG Diver code of Conduct and risk assessment were used.

Mobile animal counts At each site, three 20 m transects were conducted. All mobile animals greater than 5 cm in length and lying within 1m either side of the transect were counted and recorded on an underwater slate. In addition to the mobile animals the number of kelp stipes within the 40 m2 area were also counted.

Quadrant photography At each site and on each transect a photograph was taken of a 0.25 m2 quadrat placed every meter along the 20 m transect. The photographs were taken with a Nikon D90 and Nikon D700 in Ikelite housings respectively with dome ports and wide angle lenses, and a single Ikelite strobe. Individual animals will be counted in the quadrats and percent area cover will be determined using PhotoQuad software. These data will be used to examine community structure and will be compared between sites and depths. The community data will help the MMA project, along with SMSG data, to fine tune habitat structure at a later date.

Figure 3. Examples of underwater quadrat photography taken during the expedition

JNCC habitat types JNCC Sublittoral Habitat Forms were filled in post dive, documenting substrate type, exposure and the relative abundances of the species encountered. These data will be entered into the Marine

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Recorder database and will be used in conjunction with the quadrat data to fine tune habitat classification for the Falkland Islands.

Specimen photography

In certain dives, a team of divers were sent specifically to do macro photography of the subtidal environment. This will be able to be used as a record for species presence, as well as for improving the SMSG species catalogue. This was done in situ using a Nikon D90 with a macro lens in an Ikelite housing with a macro port. If rare, other specimens were brought to the surface and photographed with a macro lens and then fixed for the reference collection.

Figure 4. Examples of photographs taken with the macro lens. Left: Thecacera darwini; right: Cycethra verrucosa on Styela sp.

Collaborators Whenever possible data and samples were collected for other researchers and institutions. Not only does this process allow researchers from other institutions access to material from the Falkland Islands it also leads to potential funding and projects. Another advantage is that these specialists are able to identify species that are taxonomically difficult.

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Preliminary Analyses Oceanographic data The only CTD depth profile that was successfully collected occurred during the second dive station between George and Barren Islands. This was to a depth of only 6.4m. The temperature values ranged between 8.12 and 8.25 °C, with the lowest temperature in the top 0.2m of the water column. Similarly, the salinity values ranged from 30.3 to 35.27, with the lowest value occurring in the first 0.2m. On the other hand, the highest chlorophyll-a value was on the first 0.2m (1.32 ug/l), while the lowest value (0.47 ug/l) picked at 2.3m.

Figure 5. CTD values for Temperature, Salinity and Chlorophyll-a. The Y axis represents depth (m).

Side-scan sonar By the time that the report was written, only 0.6 km2 of side-scan data was processes. This came from an area to the east of Speedwell Island, from three short side-scan transects, one next to each other. The composition of the majority of the sites where side-scan was used appear to be dominated by sand, with only small rocky outcrops closer to the islands (Fig. 6).

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Figure 6. Side-scan maps conducted to the east of Speedwell Island. Top-right hand side map represents an image segmentation showing that the majority of the area was sand (red), with some minor rocky outcrops closer to the islands (green).

Deep-water camera There were 56 the deep-water camera stations. Of these, the camera did not operate on 20 occasions (two transects) due to the cables not being properly attached. Of the times when the camera did switch on, 19 out of 36 times the camera landed straight and it took the correct video and photographs, that can be used for analysis. The other 17 times (42.7% of the times), the camera felt on its side due to the strong currents, modifications are being made to the camera to improve its efficiency. Of the times when the camera did switch, 30.5% of occasions the seafloor was clearly dominated by lobster krill (Munida sp.).

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Fine Scaling of the Marine Management Areas Project (DPLUS071)

SCUBA transects Mobile Animal Surveys Data collected by divers for mobile organisms while the transects were being laid revealed that there was considerable difference in richness, abundance and diversity of mobile organisms between habitats and locations (Fig. 7). The Macrocystis/Lessonia mix forest had the highest richness of any habitat type for mobile organism, while Mud/Lessonia flavicans habitats had the lowest species richness, 162 and 19 respectively. These two habitats also had the highest and lowest abundance of organisms at 2,304 and 100 total counts respectively. According to the Shannon-Weiner Index, the highest biodiversity index was the Deep Lessonia Habitat (2.28±0.29), followed by Macrocystis Forest (2.05±0.45), while the lowest was the sandy environments (0.59±0.3). For location, Bird Island had the highest richness and abundance (65, 1126 respectively), while Speed Well and Flores Harbour had the lowest richness and abundance respectively (Fig. 7). The location with the highest Shannon-Weiner index was (2.31±0.13), while the Main Arch Island had the lowest diversity index (0.8±0.57).

These results are not unusual, kelp forests have been described as being important for diversity, this is partially thanks to their large size, giving a three-dimensional structure to the system (Wernberg et al. 2005). Such systems can then provide shelter, habitat and food to a large variety of organisms (Teagle et al. 2017). As an example, in Chile, Macrocystis forests have been considered as an outstanding biodiversity reservoir for a long time (Vásquez et al. 2001). This is greatly due to Macrocystis species having a very complex holdfast structures (Teagle et al. 2017), as well as having a life span of up to 7 years, although 4 – 5 years is more typical (Dayton et al. 1984). Highly diverse ecological structures are not limited to the holdfast, and although overall less diverse, the stipe and blade can also provide structure for complex invertebrate communities. Similarly, Lessonia will provide structure for a large array of benthic organisms. This is not to say that subtidal sand flats are not diverse, however, the methodology used for this work could not account for infaunal organisms leaving below the sand surface.

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Fine Scaling of the Marine Management Areas Project (DPLUS071)

Figure 7. Histogram graphs showing Richness, Abundance and Shannon-Weiner diversity index for habitat (left) and location (right).

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There were no strong groupings either by habitat types or by location. A Bray-Curtis resemblance matrix indicated that at 50% similarity there was certain level of grouping between stations from similar regional location. However, within this, habitat type appears to play a more important role in grouping stations together (Fig. 8).

Figure 8. Bray Curtis resemblance matrix for data recorded in the JNCC forms.

Photographic quadrats Diving was carried out at 15 locations allowing for 31 transects to be positioned and from over 600 photographs taken, there were 290 good quality pictures that can be used for analysis. Preliminary analysis of the quadrats indicate that areas such as Annie Island (south-east Main Falkland Island), appear to have high diversity levels, while regions such as Natural Arch ( Island), show very low diversity.

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Figure 7. Histogram graphs showing Richness, Abundance and Shannon-Weiner diversity index for quadrats obtained at each one of the different regions. 14

Fine Scaling of the Marine Management Areas Project (DPLUS071)

Data All data collected during this fieldwork will be stored at SAERI, with a second copy being kept in the SMSG hard-drive. The benthic data has already been stored in the Marine Recorder data centre, and in addition, a metadata entry will stored in the IMS-Data centre.

Acknowledgments This work would not have been possible without the funding provided by the UK government through the Darwin Initiative (Ref.: DPLUS071) as well as the Environmental Studies Budget provided by the Falkland Islands Government. A big thank you to the Shallow Marine Surveys Group (SMSG), a partner in the project, for providing the diving equipment and access to their volunteer list. Special thanks goes to the directors of SMSG, Mr Cartwright for giving up a week of his time to come diving with us and sharing his local knowledge and Dr Brewin for helping put all the equipment together. The crew of the Golden Fleece (Dion Poncet and Juliette Hennequin) get a big thanks from the MMA team for looking after our safety, (over)feeding us, helping out with the surveys and overall ensuring that the atmosphere was always light and entertaining on board. Thanks also go to Thomas Ferrugia and Ness Smith for giving up a week of their holidays to come and help with the survey work. Last, but not least, thank you to the MMA team Dr Marina Costa and Lauren Shea; their frantic field trip preparation and boundless enthusiasm played a key part in ensuring the huge success of this work.

Bibliography Dayton PK, Currie V, Gerrodette T, Keller BD, Rosenthal R, Tresca DV (1984) Patch dynamics and stability of some California kelp communities. Ecol Monogr 54:253–289

Teagle H, Hawkins SJ, Moore PJ, Smale DA (2017) The role of kelp species as biogenic habitat formers in coastal marine ecosystems. J Exp Mar Bio Ecol 492:81–98

Vásquez JA, Véliz D, Pardo LM (2001) Biodiversidad de macroinvertebrados bajo las grandes algas. Sustentabilidad la biodiversidad Un Probl actual Bases científico técnicas, Teor y proyecciones:293– 308

Wernberg T, Kendrick GA, Toohey BD (2005) Modification of the physical environment by an Ecklonia radiata (Laminariales) canopy and implications for associated foliose algae. Aquat Ecol 39:419–430

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APPENDICES

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Appendix 1: Event log of the expedition

Site Dive Start Event Date Location StartLat StartLong Code details Time Transect S9 Dive 15/04/2019 14:44 George Island -52.308716 -59.677218 /Photo Dolphin George Island Gen1 16/04/2019 08:05 -52.323230 -59.677020 genetic area Dolphin George Island Gen2 16/04/2019 08:27 -52.345630 -59.680870 genetic area Transect George Island S11 Dive 16/04/2019 09:30 -52.373850 -59.743283 /Photo - canal Deep D1 16/04/2019 09:35 George Island -52.373850 -59.743283 Camera C1 CTD 16/04/2019 09:54 George Island -52.373850 -59.743283 Deep D2 16/04/2019 11:00 -52.339483 -59.688367 Camera Deep D2 16/04/2019 11:04 -52.339483 -59.688367 Camera Deep D2 16/04/2019 11:07 -52.339533 -59.688000 Camera Deep D2 16/04/2019 11:10 -52.339533 -59.688000 Camera Deep D2 16/04/2019 11:14 -52.339483 -59.687400 Camera Deep D2 16/04/2019 11:17 -52.339483 -59.687400 Camera Transect S10 Dive 16/04/2019 12:10 Barren Island -52.357233 -59.679583 /Photo Transect S16 Dive 16/04/2019 15:18 Annie Island -52.271467 -59.677100 /Photo Deep D2 16/04/2019 16:52 Eagle Passage -52.260333 -59.633883 Camera Deep D2 16/04/2019 16:55 Eagle Passage -52.259417 -59.635900 Camera Deep D2 16/04/2019 16:59 Eagle Passage -52.278490 -59.635863 Camera Deep D2 16/04/2019 17:02 Eagle Passage -52.258451 -59.636027 Camera Deep D2 16/04/2019 17:06 Eagle Passage -52.257819 -59.635865 Camera Deep D2 16/04/2019 17:21 Eagle Passage -52.277033 -59.646417 Camera Deep D2 16/04/2019 17:25 Eagle Passage -52.246550 -59.646550 Camera

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Deep D2 16/04/2019 17:28 Eagle Passage -52.246217 -59.646867 Camera Deep D2 16/04/2019 17:32 Eagle Passage -52.245917 -59.647067 Camera Deep D2 16/04/2019 17:35 Eagle Passage -52.245517 -59.646867 Camera Deep D2 16/04/2019 17:51 Eagle Passage -52.234700 -59.662050 Camera Deep D2 16/04/2019 17:54 Eagle Passage -52.234167 -59.661750 Camera Deep D2 16/04/2019 17:58 Eagle Passage -52.233623 -59.661667 Camera Deep D2 16/04/2019 18:01 Eagle Passage -52.233083 -59.661167 Camera Deep D2 16/04/2019 18:04 Eagle Passage -52.232517 -59.660930 Camera S4 Dive 17/04/2019 09:10 -52.228417 -59.678817 Transect South S4 Dive 17/04/2019 09:13 -52.228417 -59.678817 /Photo Speedwell South C2 CTD 17/04/2019 09:22 -52.228417 -59.678817 Speedwell Deep D3 17/04/2019 10:56 -52.232600 -59.650600 Camera Deep D3 17/04/2019 11:00 -52.233900 -59.650600 Camera Deep D3 17/04/2019 11:03 -52.234700 -59.650500 Camera Deep D3 17/04/2019 11:06 -52.235800 -59.650300 Camera Deep D3 17/04/2019 11:10 -52.236600 -59.650100 Camera Transect Flores S3 Dive 17/04/2019 12:06 -52.239900 -59.593200 /Photo Harbour Deep D3 17/04/2019 15:00 -52.231115 -59.627467 Camera South coast Transect S17 Dive 17/04/2019 16:18 of East -52.201267 -59.633533 /Photo Falkland Dolphin Speedwell Gen3 17/04/2019 17:30 -52.202530 -59.649420 genetic Island SC1 Sidescan 18/04/2019 10:00 Speedwell -52.209760 -59.685390 Deep D4 18/04/2019 11:34 Speedwell -52.219117 -59.671933 Camera Deep D4 18/04/2019 11:37 Speedwell Camera

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Deep D4 18/04/2019 11:40 Speedwell -52.218750 -59.671950 Camera Deep D4 18/04/2019 11:44 Speedwell -52.218383 -59.671550 Camera Deep D4 18/04/2019 11:47 Speedwell -52.218100 -59.670983 Camera Deep D4 18/04/2019 12:01 Speedwell Camera Deep D4 18/04/2019 12:05 Speedwell -52.208867 -59.681767 Camera Deep D4 18/04/2019 12:12 Speedwell Camera Deep D4 18/04/2019 12:15 Speedwell -52.211650 -59.683400 Camera Deep D4 18/04/2019 12:18 Speedwell -52.211333 -59.682750 Camera Transect S7 Dive 18/04/2019 14:07 Speedwell -52.168720 -59.696030 /Photo SC2 Sidescan 18/04/2019 15:52 Speedwell -52.168200 -59.695872 Deep D4 18/04/2019 16:36 Speedwell -52.180067 -59.681367 Camera Deep D4 18/04/2019 16:43 Speedwell -52.175717 -59.688033 Camera Deep D4 18/04/2019 16:50 Speedwell -52.171050 -59.692500 Camera Dolphin Port Gen4 19/04/2019 09:50 -52.203180 -60.425200 genetic Albemarle Transect Main Arch S18 Dive 19/04/2019 11:19 -52.210117 -60.442317 /Photo Island (West) S18 Dive 19/04/2019 11:32 -52.210117 -60.442317 Transect Natural Arch S19 Dive 19/04/2019 15:43 -52.226783 -60.476800 /Photo Island (West) S19 Dive 19/04/2019 16:46 -52.226783 -60.476800 Transect S20 Dive 20/04/2019 09:23 Bird Island -52.167330 -60.918950 /Photo Transect S20 Dive 20/04/2019 10:29 Bird Island -52.167300 -60.918950 /Photo SC3 Sidescan 21/04/2019 10:36 Arch Island -52.214350 -60.487617 Transect S21 Dive 21/04/2019 12:14 Peat Island -52.183800 -60.472900 /Photo SC4 Sidescan 21/04/2019 14:15 Peat Island -52.184100 -60.589267 Transect Main Arch S22 Dive 21/04/2019 15:17 -52.201500 -60.420117 /Photo Island S22 Dive 21/04/2019 16:20 -52.201500 -60.420117 Deep D5 21/04/2019 17:33 -52.201007 -60.421582 Camera

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Deep D5 21/04/2019 17:39 -52.199241 -60.427794 Camera Deep D5 21/04/2019 17:42 -52.198217 -60.431017 Camera Deep D5 21/04/2019 17:49 Camera Deep D5 21/04/2019 18:00 -52.194450 -60.439183 Camera Transect S1 Dive 22/04/2019 08:45 -52.324267 -59.308017 /Photo

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Appendix II: A photo journey to the expedition During the eight-day expedition, the dynamic team connected very well. The level of comradery was great, with even the dishwashing duties being done as a team. Dion Poncet and Juliette Hennequin spoiled the research team, with constant large quantities of food, and helping us to get in and out of the water. The ship itself was spacious, with enough working area for the six members of the team and the two crew members, and it allowed us to conduct the different aspects of research.

Following each dinner, the team will sit down, discuss the events of the day and write the JNCC forms (although we did this after each dive, but in the evenings, we made double sure that all paperwork was completed.). In the above pictures, it is possible to appreciate the working space and dining area in the lower deck of the Golden Fleece.

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After each dive the team had to fill the tanks (upper-left photograph), a process that consumed a big part of our working hours. Luckily, Thomas Farrugia and Lauren Shea got going straight after every dive to ensure that the tank filling could happen before the end of the day. Other daily activities included the checking of the underwater camera (bottom- left), discuss the next safe dive location (upper-right) or check the organisms collected during the dive to check whether we could have discovered a new species, or at least make sure that we had a good photograph for our future records in order to double check species.

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In between all the work, we had time to “interact” with local visitors that would curiously approach us to check what we were doing. Perhaps, not so much curiosity, but annoyance displayed by this male sea lion (top photograph) about our presence in his territory… Or this orca and her calf, that didn’t really care about us, as she was more interested about checking potential dinner take outs in the area. However, all sea lions closed shop and moved to the shore for the evening.

We also had the fortunate chance to see some astonishing Falkland landscapes that not many people are capable of visiting. The one in the bottom corner photograph is from the West Arch Island.

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