Lundy – 40 years of
marine conservation
by
Keith Hiscock
for
The Taw and Exmoor branch of the British Naturalists' Association
25th February 2011
Lundy – 40 years of marine conservation
• Historical perspectives: early marine studies
• 1960s: Diving and the beginnings of conservation
• 1971: The proposal for a voluntary marine reserve
• 1970s:The voluntary marine nature reserve,
research, training and just enjoying the marine life
• 1980s and 1990s: Monitoring, more research, the
statutory marine nature reserve
Break
• The past 10 years:
- the No-Take Zone;
- more surveys and monitoring;
- becoming a ‘Marine Conservation Zone’
Historical perspective (pre 1970’s)
• The earliest recorded marine biological studies near to Lundy are noted in the
work of Forbes (1851) who took dredge samples off the east coast of the island
in 1848.
• The first descriptions of the seashore wildlife on Lundy are
those published in 1853 by the foremost Victorian marine
naturalist and writer, P.H. Gosse.
• Another naturalist, G. Tugwell returned from Lundy shores in
1851 "laden with all imaginable and unimaginable spoils”.
• Rev. Charles Kingsley records (in
Glaucus: the wonders of the shore,
1890) finding the scarlet and gold coral
at Lundy.
• Each summer between 1934 to 1937,
G.F. Tregelles visited Lundy to collect
seaweeds.
• The first systematic studies of marine ecology at Lundy
were undertaken by Professor L.A. Harvey and Mrs C.C.
Harvey together with students of Exeter University in the late
1940's and early 1950's.
In 1969, the first suggestions were made
that Lundy could be a marine reserve
My first dives on Lundy in August 1969 –
fabulous marine life and the ‘icing on the cake’
– finding the sunset cup coral, first record for
Britain.
Photograph taken on 4th August 1969
At the end of September 1969, following the
dedication service celebrating the purchase of
the island by the National Trust, John Smith of
the Landmark Trust was approached about the
possibility of a reserve.
Publicity for the marine reserve proposal
In December 1969, Heather Booker (Then
Heather Machin) published an article
“Conservation in the sea” in the Journal of the
Devon Trust for Nature Conservation that
specifically suggested Lundy as a possible
reserve.
Image: David Harvey
There were several other folks involved in
the early days:
Image: David Harvey
Ron Machin, Scientific Officer of the
Ilfracombe & North Devon Sub-Aqua
Club
John Lamerton, Assistant Regional
Officer, Nature Conservancy
Formal consultations for a voluntary marine
nature reserve started in February 1971
Nature magazine
28th May 1971
North Devon
Journal Herald 1st
April 1971
Express &
Echo 25th
March 1971
Daily Telegraph
21st March
1971
Lundy Voluntary
Marine Nature
Reserve:
established (by
agreement of the
management
policy) in 1972
See: Hiscock, K., Grainger, I.G.,
Lamerton, J.F., Dawkins, H.C. &
Langham, A.F. 1973. A policy for the
management of the shore and seabed
around Lundy. Report of the Lundy
Field Society for 1972, 23, 39-45.
So, what was all of the fuss about?
In the late 1960’s and early 1970’s, concerns were mainly
about divers taking souvenirs – many dried sea fans and sea
urchins left the island in tea chests destined to be sold as
curios and the population of crawfish was also being decimated
by divers and by tangle netting.
And, Lundy has fabulous marine life:
Established richness of the rocky shores – from the words of George Tugwell in 1851,
who returned from Lundy “laden with all imaginable and unimaginable spoils”
The greatest variety of marine algae (307+ species) of any one locality in the British Isles
A very high diversity of reef habitats (e.g. 30 different habitats – as level 4 biotopes
described by drop-down video - compared with a more usual <15 for such areas).
The marine fauna shows great diversity – 753 taxa listed. With the algae, Lundy
has one eighth of the recorded multicellular marine species in the British Isles.
Colourful marine fauna including rare and scarce species
Knoll Pins, 1986
All of the British shallow water corals
0
Caryophyllia
smithii
Leptopsammia
pruvoti
Hoplangia
durotrix
5 cm
Caryophyllia
inornata
Balanophyllia
regia
Image courtesy of Robert Irving
Rich communities in the undisturbed sediments off the east coast
Rich fish populations
Cuckoo wrasse, Labrus mixtus
Seals, Halichoerus grypus
Rich in open water species, including oceanic organisms
Blue jellyfish Cyanea lamarkii
Basking shark, Cetorhinus maximus (image: David Sims)
Buoy barnacle, Dosima fascicularis
1970s:The voluntary marine nature reserve, research, training ....
Inventory of the fauna 1971-80
Lab work in the Barn
Studies of burrowing species 1974
Rocky shore surveys - wave -exposed shores
Dead Cow Point, 1977
….. preparing interpretive material ….
Lundy stamps issue:
And, in 2011, a
cancellation stamp:
….. and just enjoying the marine life
In the 1960’s, 70’s and into the 80’s, diving at Lundy was run by Bristol Channel Divers
The 1980s and 1990s: Mapping, monitoring, more research,
the statutory marine nature reserve
Mapping habitats in 1983
In 1984, monitoring sites were established for some of the
features of conservation importance
Lundy statutory
Marine Nature
Reserve:
established 21
November 1986
Time to come-up for air
BREAK
and rolling slide show
Image: Chris Pirie
The past 10
years:
Lundy is now an
EU Special Area of
Conservation, has
a No-Take Zone on
the east coast and
the MNR
designation has
been changed to
‘Marine
Conservation Zone’
The No Take Zone: gains from conservation
at Lundy
Spatial sampling for
lobsters & crabs
S o uth
W a le s
N ea r
c o n tro l
1
F ar
refe ren c e
1
B ristol
C han nel
S1
S1
S2
L un d y
S2
N ea r
c o n tro l
2
F ar
refe ren c e
2
N TZ
S1
S2
N orth
D evon
N
50 km
Abundances of lobsters
A ll sizes
M ea n n u m b e r p e r s trin g
14
ANOVA tests:
12
10
Near
8
• Year x NTZ vs Control:
Non significant
(F3,3 = 0.19, P = 0.89)
Far
6
4
2
0
Lundy
NTZ
Lundy
Con 1
Lundy
Con 2
N o rth
D evon
Ref
S o u th
W a le s
Ref
• Year x NTZ vs Reference:
Non significant
(F3,3 = 5.25, P = 0.10)
27
A next question to address is “what
impact, if any, has the increased lobster
population had on other benthic species?”
The numbers of Necora puber being caught in traps has fallen
since lobster numbers have risen – is there a link?
Lundy shores – 60 years on
The next day and the next day’s weather
Sorting quantitative samples from Coralline turfs
Measuring toothed topshells – a climate change indicator species
Subtidal ‘condition’ monitoring – September 2010
Natural England staff undertaking rocky shore surveys
Lundy is changing: alien species
Harpoon weed, Asparagopsis armata
Wire weed Sargassum muticum
Lundy is changing: warming seas
Topshell Osilinus lineatus
New discoveries
Asterina phylactica
New technology, new images (multi-beam sonar)
Lundy attracts a large numbers of divers
Always, media interest: ‘Coast’ - filmed on 4 & 5 September 2008
And ‘Britain’s secret seas’, May
2010, screening soon
And, always new things to do and discover
Finding-out more about marine life
www.marlin.ac.uk/learningzone
Finding-out more about marine protected
areas
www.ukmpas.org
www.lundy.org.uk
www.lundyisland.co.uk
Thankyou