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Marine Life & Conservation

Mauritius by night: When the nocturnal species come out to play

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The boat leaves as dusk begins to fall and as the sun sets, we kit up in a fluster of haste, careful not to forget our torches, nervous because it’s unfamiliar to be going diving when everyone else is going out to dinner. We each have a torch and we are told not to switch them on before we hit the water, as they will spoil our night vision.

Menon gives a much longer dive briefing than normal and a lot of it is to do with the unfamiliar darkness we will be diving in. We will be diving Point Vacoas, a reef characterised by sand striped gullies and rich in towering ancient brain coral bomies. During the day it is coloured by delicate pink lilac and peach soft corals and filled with fish life.

He warns us to keep well above the reef until we have a feel for the surrounding darkness. There is a torch at the top of the buoy line and a torch at the bottom. We backward roll into pitch blackness, and switch on our lights. The boat’s navigation lights come on so we know where we are, where the bottom is, and where the boat is.

Sorted.

We sink through the crystal water towards the bottom, careful not to shine our torches in each other’s eyes. It’s easy to spot the others in the group, their torches are like light sabres on the white sand in the marine darkness.

As we reach the reef a hand, lit by a torch points, and there is a juvenile bar-tail moray hunting in the dark, his victim oblivious.

Morays are normally easily spotted during the day in Mauritius, but rarely do we see them outside their holes. They hunt by night.

As I filmed him a light caught an orange undulation, and a Spanish dancer wove his way down to the reef, caught in the spotlight of the whole group of torches.

He was at least 300mm long, and he undulated gracefully, flashing his exquisite colours. You never see them during the day, and I have no idea where they hide. I have often seen their egg ribbons, but I’ve never seen these huge nudibranchs during the day. Another rare nudi was a Berthalini, another huge nocturnal creature built along the same lines and almost as spectacular as the Spanish Dancer.

Someone taps his tank and one of the torches hovers on a large grey creature. I turn towards the sound, and there is a completely unfamiliar creature, silvery grey, box shaped, long spiked tail, about 600 mm long, flapping and hovering and turning in circles.

It’s a Cowfish, and according to the books, it’s not found in Mauritius. It’s found in Indonesia, but there it is looking a little embarrassed at being caught out in the wrong ocean. On honeymoon perhaps? We looked around but could not find his mate.

Another group of unfamiliar creatures was hiding in a crevice. The squat lobster is also not common in Mauritius, so it was wonderful to fine a pair of them hiding in a hole, edging their way tentatively out to find a midnight snack.

I get excited by anything unfamiliar, and that night I saw at least 5 creatures I have never seen in over 1500 dives worldwide. There was a slipper lobster, a finning marbled electric ray, a baby two spot lionfish, proudly spreading his colourful fins, a spot backed crab and a giant coral crab that must have been at lead 500mm across the shell.

Suddenly out of the darkness appeared an extraordinary spider like creature which we later identified as a decorator crab. He uses his sticky spit to attach shells, seaweed and small anemones to his back and legs, and looks like something out of a bad sci-fi movie.

After 50 minutes of dramatic exploration, it was time start ascending, torches firmly lit and pointing down. This time, we had to leave them switched on in case someone dropped one as they are huge and quite costly. We each carried a smaller pocket torch in case of failure, so night diving is always about being doubly safe.

When we got back to the dive centre, Lorenzo from the restaurant next door had prepared a Mauritian feast for us which he served at the dive centre and we sat around the de-briefing table at the Dive Centre drinking Phoenix beer and South African wine, identifying our finds and chatting. It was one of the best dives I have done in Mauritius and I hope to make it the first of many.


Words Jill Holloway

Pics Jill Holloway

Copyright Ocean Spirit

www.osdiving.com

Jill Holloway lives in Mauritius and at Sodwana Bay Isimangaliso Wetland Park in South Africa. A PADI qualified Nitrox diver with over 1,500 dives, she is a passionate observer and preserver of the marine environment, and has a database of over 35,000 fish pics and hundreds of Gopro videos on fish behaviour, which she shares with her readers.

Marine Life & Conservation

New report shows simple measures needed to cut beach plastic pollution

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The Marine Conservation Society has launched its annual State of our Beaches 2023 report, highlighting the need for less single-use plastic items and more refillable options.

The charity’s beach cleaning programme, now in its 30th year, asks volunteers to record all litter that they find within a 100-metre stretch of beach. By gathering vital data from across the UK and Channel Islands, the charity creates change for cleaner seas and a healthier planet through policy and industry change. Last year, over 148 kilometres of beach were surveyed by volunteers, who removed 17,208kgs of litter from our coast.

Using data collected by over 14,000 volunteers, the State of our Beaches 2023 report shows that half of all litter collected came from public sources – either dumped, blown or washed onto our beaches.

Drinks-related litter, such as plastic bottles, caps and cans were one of the most found items, with an average of 16 found per 100 metres of beach surveyed. This figure is up 14% compared to the charity’s 2022 report.

Plastics caps and lids were recorded on 89% of surveys, with over 30,000 found in total. Plastic bottles were also commonly collected, with 73% of surveys finding this single-use item – a 4% increase compared to 2022. The charity’s inland litter pick survey, Source to Sea, also reported finding plastic bottles on 92% of cleans.

However, the charity’s State of Our Beaches 2023 report also indicates that some types of litter are on a downward trend. Although still in the top 10 litter items, disposable plastic cutlery, trays and straws were found on 5% fewer beaches across the UK, showing that bans on these plastic items between 2022 – 2023 could be working. The presence of plastic cotton bud sticks also dropped by 14%.

Lizzie Price, Beachwatch Manager at the Marine Conservation Society, said, “Half of the litter found on our beaches originates from public sources, underscoring the pressing issue of single-use plastic. Evidence shows that refillable alternatives and litter return schemes effectively reduce rubbish, as demonstrated by the decline our data has shown in items like plastic bags and disposable cutlery.

“Urgent and decisive action from UK governments is needed to accelerate our shift towards a circular economy, where we reuse, repair and recycle. The public needs greater access to refillable products and systems need to be implemented in which manufacturers are responsible for their waste.”

Governments across the UK have committed to delivering deposit return schemes from October 2025. However, the proposed scheme in England does not include glass items, despite glass being found on 52% of beaches in 2023. The charity is calling for governments across the UK to introduce compatible all inclusive deposit return schemes as soon as possible. This would see aluminium cans, and plastic and glass bottles have a 20p deposit which would be returned when recycled which would reduce drinks-related pollution.

Businesses are, however, starting to take refillable and reusable options into their own hands. Supermarket chain, Aldi, the largest corporate funder of the charity’s 2024 Beachwatch programme, is already leading the charge in refillable items by trialling refillable options for cereals and porridge oats in their stores over the past 5 months.

Plastics and Packaging Director, Luke Emery, from Aldi, who are running 4 beach cleans for staff and volunteers in 2024, said, We are continually working to reduce single-use plastics and packaging, and making unpackaged product options more commonplace for our customers is a key part of this. We are really pleased with the uptake of our refillable range so far by customers. Not only are we making sustainable shopping more accessible, but we also offer refill products for a better price than the packaged alternative, helping our customers save money.”

Marine litter is one of the biggest threats to our seas, with plastic breaking down over time into microplastics and threatening marine life which can ingest or become entangled in them. The Marine Conservation Society is urging the UK Government to move faster on its policies to cut down plastic waste and prevent items from reaching our seas.

To find out more about the charity’s beach cleans and how to get involved, please visit mcsuk.org/beach-cleans

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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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