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Marine Life & Conservation Blogs

Our Oceans are in Critical Danger… can you really make a difference?

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Yes. You can. Each and every one of us can make a difference. How? By making small, but important, choices. Here are some easy examples of how you can start to make a difference:

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  1. Only eat sustainable and responsibly fished seafood. How do you know what is okay to eat? Go to Seafood Watch, the app updated regularly by the Monterey Bay Aquarium and when you go out to eat… check to see which seafood on the menu is sustainable. The lists are separated by area of the country (or world), and given a Green, Yellow, or Red light. Red means the fish is critically overfished. Ever wonder why Red Snapper is hard to find these days? They’ve been overfished, and their populations have critically declined. You can read about it here, at NOAA Fishwatch.

In some areas of the world it is okay to eat Snapper…fresh, line caught snapper….but in others, the populations are not sustainably fished. By using the Seafood Watch app, you can check which fish are okay to eat, and which ones to avoid. Here is the worst cop out of all: well, it’s already dead so I might as well order it. It is the demand for it that drives over-fishing. When people realize that in order to eat Red Snapper in the future they must not order it now… give our fisheries time to recover. Until then, if it is on the Red List, don’t eat or order it!

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  1. Do not eat at restaurants that serve endangered animals. Do not eat at restaurants serving shark. Any kind of shark. Why? Sharks are endangered. If we lose our sharks, our oceans will collapse. That seems pretty dramatic, right? But it is true. Sharks have been around for 450 million years. They are the apex predator (except for humans) in the ocean. They keep marine populations in balance. Sharks tend to eat the older, sicker, slower members of a population, which keeps that population healthier. They keep populations in check, which protects other food sources in the ocean like grasses, plants, corals, mollusks, etc. The foodweb is a constant balancing act, and sharks are a keystone species, meaning that they must be in the ecosystem or that ecosystem will collapse. Sharks kill around 5 people a year. Humans slaughter 75 to 100 million sharks a year, mostly for their fins. For that matter, do not eat turtle, turtle soup, turtle eggs, etc. They are critically endangered!
  1. When you travel, fly airlines that do not carry endangered species cargo. American Airlines just announced it will no longer carry shark fins as cargo! They join, just to name a few, Air New Zealand, Air Pacific, Cathay Pacific, Singapore Airlines, Jet Airways, and United Airlines. Many, many carriers are joining the crusade to stop transporting ivory, rhino horns, shark fins, manta fins, sea turtles and other endangered species parts. Choose your airline based on this kind of criteria. If they contribute to the shark fin trade, do not fly them. And let them know why you won’t fly them. Use social media to chastise any transport of these endangered species parts.
  1. When it comes to trading in endangered species, we know the major consumer is China. Other Asian countries are also consumers, but the heart and soul of the shark fin trade is in Hong Kong. The nation of China has stopped serving Shark Fin Soup at state functions… a huge leap forward! Hong Kong has recently followed suit. 95% of shark fins are consumed by Asian countries and go through Hong Kong. The trade is beginning to decline, but we have to keep up the pressure. Shangri-La Hotels and the Peninsula Hotel Group just announced they will no longer serve shark fin soup, bird’s nest, or black moss – all endangered. If you are traveling to Asia, ask the hotel if they sell shark fin soup, any ivory products, or anything with rhino horns. If they do, make the decision not to stay there, and let them know why.
  1. Don’t buy Chinese medicines with rhino horn, shark liver, or any other endangered species ingredient. Believe me, no scientific study has ever shown that these ingredients cure disease or serve as an aphrodisiac. If there is no demand, the trade will collapse.

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Do you know the extent that humans depend upon the ocean to live? The Nature Conservancy points out that the ocean absorbs 1/3 of human produced carbon-dioxide and supplies us with oxygen. Kelp, a plant from the ocean, is used to make salad dressing, dairy products, shampoos and medicines. Compounds from the coral reefs, plants and animals, help treat numerous diseases. Oceans produce 70% more goods and services into our economies and GDPs than land products. Each and every one of us needs the ocean healthy in order to survive. We all have a responsibility.

Rob Stewart, producer of the film Sharkwater, and Revolution, said this recently on his Facebook page:  “By 2050, we will live in a world with no reefs, no rainforests, no fish, and 9 billion hungry people.” You might not be here, but if you have children, they will. It is horrifying to think about how catastrophic living in that world would be. There are only a finite amount of resources, and we cannot keep allowing our population to grow without serious consequences to the quality of human life.

Start small, but start soon! If we all make small, good decisions, we can make a big difference. We must all begin now… life depends on it.

For more from Tam, visit www.travelswithtam.com.

Tam Warner Minton is an avid scuba diver, amateur underwater photographer, and adventurer. She encourages "citizen science" diving, whether volunteering with a group or by one's self. For Tam, the unexpected is usually the norm!

Marine Life & Conservation Blogs

Creature Feature: Undulate Ray

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In this series, the Shark Trust will be sharing amazing facts about different species of sharks and what you can do to help protect them.

This month we’re looking at the Undulate Ray. Easily identified by its beautiful, ornate pattern, the Undulate Ray gets its name from the undulating patterns of lines and spots on its dorsal side.

This skate is usually found on sandy or muddy sea floors, down to about 200 m deep, although it is more commonly found shallower. They can grow up to 90 cm total length. Depending on the size of the individual, their diet can range from shrimps to crabs.

Although sometimes called the Undulate Ray, this is actually a species of skate, meaning that, as all true skates do, they lay eggs. The eggs are contained in keratin eggcases – the same material that our hair and nails are made up of! These eggcases are also commonly called mermaid’s purses and can be found washed up on beaches all around the UK. If you find one, be sure to take a picture and upload your find to the Great Eggcase Hunt – the Shark Trust’s flagship citizen science project.

It is worth noting that on the south coasts, these eggcases can be confused with those of the Spotted Ray, especially as they look very similar and the ranges overlap, so we sometimes informally refer to them as ‘Spundulates’.

Scientific Name: Raja undulata

Family: Rajidae

Maximum Size: 90cm (total length)

Diet: shrimps and crabs

Distribution: found around the eastern Atlantic and in the Mediterranean Sea.

Habitat: shelf waters down to 200m deep.

Conservation Status : As a commercially exploited species, the Undulate Ray is a recovering species in some areas. The good thing is that they have some of the most comprehensive management measures of almost any elasmobranch species, with both minimum and maximum landing sizes as well as a closed season. Additionally, targeting is entirely prohibited in some areas. They are also often caught as bycatch in various fisheries – in some areas they can be landed whilst in others they must be discarded.

IUCN Red List Status: Endangered

For more great shark information and conservation visit the Shark Trust Website


Image Credits: Banner – Sheila Openshaw; Illustration – Marc Dando

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Guarding Against Coral Invaders

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Protecting (Dutch) Caribbean Reefs from Unomia stolonifera

Recent reports highlight the concerning spread of the invasive soft coral, Unomia stolonifera, currently devastating Venezuela’s marine ecosystems and detected in Cuba. With the potential threat of its expansion to the (Dutch) Caribbean islands, urgent action and awareness are essential to safeguard marine biodiversity and local economies from possible catastrophic consequences.

Invasive species are animals or plants from another region of the world that don’t belong in their new environment. These species can have major ecological effects by decimating native flora or fauna. They can also cause large economic losses and impact human health. Invasive species also pose a significant threat to marine ecosystems worldwide, including the Dutch Caribbean. Among these invaders is the octocoral species Unomia stolonifera or “Pulsing Xenia”, originally from the Indo-Pacific. With its rapid growth and lack of natural predators, this species can outcompete native species and disrupt fragile marine habitats such as seagrass beds and coral reefs.

Background

The invasive soft coral U. stolonifera was first identified in 2014, off the coast of Venezuela. It is believed to have been introduced via the illegal aquarium trade.  Since this species can reproduce sexually and asexually (or fragment), even small pieces can regenerate to spread.  Once introduced it quickly took over shallow reefs and hard substrate at depths of 0-50 meters, outcompeting local corals and seagrass for space.  Follow on surveys found that this coral species exhibited average percentage cover as high as 80%, vastly outcompeting native corals. In highly colonized areas, fish are disappearing due to loss of habitats.

In 2022, during a survey conducted in Cuba by the University of Havana, an unknown octocoral was discovered which was later identified as the invasive Unomia stolonifera. It is suspected that the coral larvae arrived in ballast water from fossil fuel ships originating from Venezuela, as nearby sites adjacent to Venezuelan ports have been heavily affected by the invasion.

How to help

Prevention through continuous monitoring, particularly in high-risk areas such as marine harbors and oil facilities, is paramount. Early detection plays a pivotal role in mitigating the threat posed by Unomia stolonifera.

The public’s involvement and awareness are also vital. Local communities, recreational divers, tourists, and all stakeholders are urged to participate in early detection efforts by reporting sightings (photo, location and date) of this invasive coral to their respective Protected Area Management Organization (PMO’s)- the Fundacion Parke Nacional Aruba (FPNA)STINAPA BonaireCARMABI Curaçao Saba Conservation Foundation (SCF)Nature Foundation St. Maarten (NFSXM) and St. Eustatius National Parks (STENAPA). If an invaded area is confirmed, follow the recommendations by the local PMO’s.

Keys to Success

Despite the challenges, early detection is key to mitigating the threat posed by Unomia stolonifera. With continued vigilance, research, and community engagement, there is hope for containing this potential issue before it becomes a major threat.

About the DCNA

The Dutch Caribbean Nature Alliance (DCNA) supports (science) communication and outreach in the Dutch Caribbean region by making nature related (scientific) information more widely available through amongst others the Dutch Caribbean Biodiversity Database, DCNA’s news platform BioNews and through the press. This article contains the results from several scientific studies but the studies themselves are not DCNA studies. No rights can be derived from the content. DCNA is not liable for the content and the in(direct) impacts resulting from publishing this article.

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