Beach visitors are invited to turn scientist and take part in this seaweed survey. The aim is to better understand effects of environmental change. The Marine Conservation Society (MCS) teamed up with the Natural History Museum to launch the project in 2009.
With their 3D structure and multi-coloured forms, seaweeds create shelter and food for an immense diversity of other marine organisms and also support commercial fisheries. But most people don’t give them a second look, and even consider them a slippery nuisance we could do without!
The Importance of Seaweed
The seashores and shallow seas around Britain support over 650 species of seaweed. They’re globally significant and an important component of British biodiversity.
The study will increase our knowledge of how sea temperature increase, sea level rise, impacts of non-native species and increasing acidity are affecting the distribution of different species of seaweed.
“It’s easy to take them for granted, but seaweeds are fascinating, provide shelter and food for an immense variety of marine wildlife, and are of enormous use to humanity”, says Professor Juliet Brodie, of the Natural History Museum. “People are unaware that our daily lives are affected by seaweeds in many ways, from foods and medicines to buffering the effects of rough seas on our vulnerable coastlines”.
Seaweed Survey
The Big Seaweed Search is a citizen science project. It helps to map out the distribution of seaweeds around Britain. The distribution and abundance of these marine plants around our coasts is changing. Not as attractive as flowers, butterflies or birds, seaweeds often get overlooked.
The Seaweed Survey is a great way to find out more about UK seaweeds, and to help researchers track how they are faring in changing environmental conditions. Anyone, anywhere can join in. It’s also a fun, free activity for kids and families to do!
What are you looking for?
In the Big Seaweed Search, eight species of conspicuous wracks (part of the common names of several species of seaweed) have been selected for the public to record. Many of these will probably be familiar. Here’s a couple of them:
There’s bladder wrack, Fucus vesiculosus, with its bladders resembling bubble-wrap that pop underfoot.
Knotted wrack, Ascophyllum nodosum, produces a single egg-like bladder once a year. Did you know that it can live for an estimated 50-60 years.
Alien Invaders
The study also hopes to unearth more about non-natives and their impact on British coasts. These ‘aliens’ are here to stay but this study will establish whether any of these seaweeds are changing in their range, or becoming more or less widespread.
Wireweed is one of the most well-known ‘aliens’ in the study. Sargassum muticum, a brown seaweed that was first recorded on the south coast of England in 1973 and has spread very rapidly since then.
Another conspicuous non-native seaweed, and a favoured food in Japan, is Wakame. Undaria pinnatifida, was first recorded in Britain in 1994 on pontoons but is now starting to colonise rocky shores.
How to take part in the Seaweed Survey
Anyone can be a citizen scientist. Use the simple instructions and identification guide to make a valuable contribution to our knowledge of this important and underappreciated group of marine life.
- Download the Big Seaweed Search Guide. Save it on your phone or print it out to take to the beach. Then it doesn’t matter if there’s a poor internet connection!
- Download the Recording Form and print it out to take with you.
To take part, register at www.nhm.ac.uk/seaweeds
Why don’t you share your findings with us?
Post photos of your findings in the Visit Fylde Coast Facebook group
Or Tweet them and tag in @visitFyldeCoast
Other pages you might be interested in –
There’s a huge selection of interesting information on the webpages of Visit Fylde Coast. Use the search box to find your way around – if you know what you’re looking for! Or what about –
- If you’re going on the beach, always take care and follow beach safety advice
- Take some photos and add them to our Coast Watchers timeline
- There are plenty of other things to do for free on the Fylde Coast
- And of course we’ve got LOADS of information about the weather!
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