Lundy Marine Management Plan 2017 Respect, Protect, Enjoy! This plan should be cited as: Lundy Management Forum. 2017. Lundy Marine Management Plan 2017. Written by Rebecca MacDonald and revised by Robert Irving. Produced for Natural England by the Landmark Trust, Lundy Island. Preface The following Marine Management Plan supersedes the previous plan published in 2001. It has been written and designed by Rebecca MacDonald (Lundy Warden, 2013-2016) on behalf of the Lundy Management Forum and revised by Robert Irving (Sea-Scope Marine Environmental Consultants/Lundy MPA Advisory Group). Funding was provided by Natural England. Lundy’s marine environment has been protected for over 40 years through national, European and international conservation designations. The all-encompassing term of ‘Marine Protected Area’ has been adopted after consultation with the island stakeholders to describe the reserve around the island. This term therefore will be used throughout this document. For details of the specific conservation designations that are included in the Marine Protected Area, please refer to Section 1.2 Conservation Status, to the Glossary of Terms in section 9 and also to Annex A. This plan is designed to address issues relevant to the protection of Lundy’s Marine Protected Area and its associated habitats and species in a holistic and practical manner, and therefore incorporates some elements that are not traditionally included within a Marine Management Plan. Each section relates to a specific colour-coded theme, allowing users to locate the information that they require easily. By so doing, it is intended that the necessary resources are readily available to implement effective management measures and thereby protect Lundy’s seascape and marine biodiversity for future generations. Information from a variety of sources has been collated to produce this plan, drawing upon published and unpublished studies as well as the personal knowledge of individuals. Whilst none of the sources has been referenced specifically within the text itself, the most relevant references are listed at the end of each section. In addition, a list of all sources used is available in the ‘Sources and Further Information’ section and this should be referred to when further detail is required. Acknowledgments This Management Plan has been developed through consultation with the National Trust, Historic England, Natural England, the Environment Agency, Devon and Severn Inshore Fisheries Conservation Authority, RSPB, the Marine Management Organisation, the Lundy Field Society and the Lundy Marine Protected Area Advisory Group. We would like to thank all those who have contributed to the Plan and we are grateful for their continued commitment to ensure that it will fulfill its purpose as an informative and comprehensive document for all those who support the sustainable use of Lundy’s Marine Protected Area. Summary Lundy’s Marine Protected Area Rising 140m out of the Bristol Channel, the island of Lundy is a spectacular granite outcrop, home to a wealth of marine and terrestrial wildlife such as beautiful cup corals, Atlantic puffins and the endemic Lundy cabbage. The sea around Lundy has been protected since 1973, initially as a Voluntary Marine Nature Reserve and today as a Marine Protected Area encompassing a Special Area of Conservation, a Site of Special Scientific Interest and a Marine Conservation Zone with a No Take Zone. The Marine Protected Area covers around 13.9km2 and extends all around the island’s 15km long coastline. Conserving and enhancing Lundy The management scheme set out in this plan has been created to inform and advise users of ways to conserve and enhance Lundy’s natural and historic resources, including measures to mitigate the impacts of potentially detrimental activities. Its purpose is to support the following overall aim: To manage Lundy’s Marine Protected Area for the benefit of its wildlife, to promote the ecologically sustainable use of resources and the use of the protected area for education, research and the enjoyment of all aspects of the marine and coastal environment. A series of principles has been identified to steer the approach to conserve and enhance the marine environment at Lundy through management which: Benefits and enhances both marine and terrestrial wildlife Promotes the ecologically sustainable use of resources Raises awareness and understanding through education and active engagement Considers multi-users and supports associated recreational activities Supports research and monitoring Through working together in partnership, all organisations, stakeholders and those with an interest in the island can continue to enhance and promote the unspoilt nature of Lundy’s natural and historic resources long into the future. This Management Plan aims to provide an easy-to-access, informative document to allow all users to obtain the information that they seek. As all users of Lundy’s marine environment are responsible for acting on the policies and achieving the objectives of this Management Plan, there is no formal Action Plan associated with this document. We hope that, where further information is required to inform delivery of the Plan, specific projects can be set up and (where necessary) funded to allow continual progress towards achieving the goals it sets out. This Management Plan will be a living document, where issues and policies can be added and addressed, as and when they arise. CONTENTS 1. Introduction 1.1 Site characteristics 9 1.1.1 Physical environment 9 1.1.2 Marine biological information 11 1.2 Conservation status 12 1.2.1 Qualifying features for the Special Area of Conservation 13 1.3 Tenure 14 1.4 History of Conservation Management 15 1.5 History of Research and Monitoring 16 2. Management framework 2.1 Island Warden 17 2.2 Lundy Marine Protected Area Advisory Group 18 2.3 Lundy Management Forum, including policies and objectives 19 2.4 Day-to-day management of the MPA 25 2.5 The MPA Code of Conduct and Zoning Scheme 25 2.6 Previous Management Plans 27 2.7 How the condition of the MPA is assessed 27 3. Natural environment Features map 29 3.1 Habitats and Communities 31 3.1.1 Reefs 3.1.1a Rocky shore communities 33 3.1.1b Kelp forest communities 36 3.1.1c Vertical and overhanging circalittoral rock communities 39 3.1.1d Circalittoral bedrock and stable boulder communities 42 3.1.2 Subtidal sandbanks 45 3.1.3 Submerged or partially submerged sea caves 48 3.2 Species of Conservation Concern 3.2.1 Atlantic grey seals Halichoerus grypus 50 3.2.2 Scarlet and gold star coral Balanophyllia regia 53 3.2.3 Sunset cup coral Leptopsammia pruvoti 55 3.2.4 Pink sea fan Eunicella verrucosa 57 3.2.5 Axinellid sponges 60 3.2.6 Crawfish/spiny lobster Palinurus elephas 63 3.2.7 Red band fish Cepola macropthalma 65 3.2.8 Basking shark Cetorhinus maximus 67 3.2.9 Common dolphin Delphinus delphis, harbour porpoise Phocoena phocoena and bottlenose dolphin Tursiops truncatus 70 3.2.10 Manx shearwater Puffinus puffinus 73 3.2.11 Atlantic puffin Fratercula arctica 76 3.2.12 Razorbill Alca torda 79 3.2.13 Common guillemot Uria aalge 82 3.2.14 Black-legged kittiwake Rissa tridactyla 85 3.2.15 Storm petrel Hydrobates pelagicus 88 3.2.16 Shag Phalacrocorax aristotelis 90 3.2.17 Other breeding seabirds: fulmar Fulmaris glacialis, lesser black-backed gull Larus fuscus, great black-backed gull Larus marinus and herring gulls Larus argentatus 93 3.3 Species of Interest 3.3.1 European lobster Homarus gammarus 96 3.3.2 Edible/brown crab Cancer pagurus 99 3.3.3 King scallop Pecten maximus 101 3.4 Non-native /Invasive species 3.4.1 Wireweed Sargassum muticum 103 3.4.2 Harpoon weed Asparagopsis armata 105 4. Historic environment 4.1 Protected wreck sites 4.1.1 Gull Rock 107 4.1.2 Iona II 110 4.2 Scheduled monuments (Coastal) 4.2.1 Brazen Ward 113 4.2.2 Upper and lower Mangonel platforms 115 4.2.3 The Quarries 117 5. Environmental quality 5.1 Water quality 119 5.2 Pollution and marine Litter 122 6. Promoting Lundy’s Marine Protected Area 6.1 Educational access 124 6.2 Research 126 6.3 Visitor engagement 128 6.4 Media 130 7. Enjoying the Marine Protected Area 7.1 Recreational and sport angling 132 7.2 Water sports (including diving and swimming) 134 7.3 Water craft (boats, kayaks and jet-skis) 136 8. Living and working at Lundy 8.1 Tourism 138 8.2 Fisheries 140 9. GLOSSARY OF TERMS AND ABBREVIATIONS USED 142 IN THE TEXT 10. Sources and further information 10.1 Introduction 146 10.2 Management Framework 146 10.3 Natural Environment 147 10.3.1 Marine Habitats and Communities 148 10.3.2 Species of Conservation Concern 149 10.3.3 Species of interest 153 10.3.4 Non-native/Invasive species 154 10.4 Historic Environment 10.4.1 Protected Wreck sites 154 10.4.2 Scheduled Monuments 155 10.5 Environmental Quality 155 10.6 Promoting Lundy’s Marine Protected Area 155 10.7 Enjoying the Marine Protected Area 156 10.8 Living and working at Lundy 157 Annex Ai – Conservation terms and how they relate to species included in this plan – Additional marine species of conservation concern Annex Aii Annex B – The MPA’s Code of Conduct Annex C – Lundy’s Tidal Streams Annex D – Map of Lundy (showing named coastal features) 1. Introduction 1.1 Site characteristics The island of Lundy, 5km long by 1km wide and about 4.3km2 in area, lies approximately 17km off the nearest point of the North Devon coast, where the Bristol Channel meets the Atlantic Ocean (51° 11’N, 4° 40’W; OS grid.