TURNING DIVERS INTO SEAHORSE CONSERVATIONISTS
SEAHORSES ARE SUCH INTRIGUING
and charismatic creatures. Yes, they are fish, but at first glance they don’t much look like it. They are masters of camouflage and they are biologically unique – the only animal species where the males give birth. The more you learn about seahorses, the more fascinating they become.
As a diver, you probably also know that seahorses are challenging to find. Their remarkable camouflaging
Saving seahorses starts with research – research that you can easily get involved in! Scientists and volunteers around the world, people just like you, are working towards a common
goal of collecting data that will mean better protection of these charismatic little creatures. And they are all waiting for
you to join them. Here are three of their stories… Have you ever spotted a seahorse during one of your dives? Then you’ve experienced the exhilaration these incredible animals can bring you, just by being in their presence.
I have seen how divers can make a big difference simply by sharing their seahorse observations
capabilities and their vast geographical range make it difficult for scientists to study them in the wild.
That’s why Project Seahorse, the conservation group I work for, launched a pioneering citizen science program called iSeahorse. iSeahorse is a website and smartphone app that allows anyone, anywhere in the world to contribute to the science and conservation of these amazing and important animals.
SCIENTIFIC DISCOVERIES IN THE PHILIPPINES AND BEYOND
Since the launch of iSeahorse just over two years ago, we’ve received over 1,850 wild observations of a total of nearly 3,000 animals from divers all over the world. More than 15 percent of all observations have occurred outside the known range of the given species. In other words, iSeahorse is changing what we know about where different seahorse species live in the world. This affects how we study them and how we protect them.
In my role working on the iSeahorse project in the Philippines, I have seen firsthand how divers and other citizen scientists can make a big difference to science and conservation, simply by sharing their seahorse observations. We’ve received many out-of-range tiger tail seahorse (Hippocampus comes) sightings, for example, which have caused Project Seahorse scientists to rethink that species’ range. iSeahorse user Lenny Kim spotted a weedy pygmy seahorse
(H. pontohi) for the first time ever in the Philippines – an important discovery that generated national media attention and awareness.
ACTION FOR SEAHORSES
Even more importantly, iSeahorse is generating action for seahorses.
So far, we’ve recruited 10 dedicated seahorse population monitors in nine countries around the world – Thailand, Cambodia, Spain, Mozambique, Tanzania, South Korea, Australia, Philippines, and the United Arab Emirates. These are people and organisations (divers, dive clubs, tour operators, and other groups) who track the health of local populations over time and monitor threats. They are poised to raise the alarm for action when there are sudden changes in local seahorse numbers or habitats – an early global warning system for seahorse conservation.
In the Philippines, for example, iSeahorse has prompted the creation of a brand-new marine protected area (MPA) in Bohol, Philippines.
In response to threats from overfishing and other harmful human activities, our team is working with citizen scientists and local communities to establish a no-take marine sanctuary to protect threatened seahorse populations – including the tiger tail seahorse, which is listed as “Vulnerable” in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, and the tiny and hard-to- spot Bargibant’s pygmy seahorse (H. bargibanti) – along with other small fish species and vital coastal ecosystems.
Together, we can make sure that these mysterious and important animals are healthy and thriving the world over. Check out the infographic on page 53 for more information.
IF YOU’D ASKED ME three years ago, I would have said diving is just a hobby. Although I loved the ocean, work came first and it took up most of my time. Then, about two-and-a-half years ago as luck would have it, I was given an opportunity to move from the US, and the kelp forests I had grown up diving, to Sydney, Australia. I had accepted a job at Manly Sealife Sanctuary, a job that involved a whole lot of diving.
The Sanctuary
Manly Sealife Sanctuary is a small place located at the northern end of Sydney Harbour with a mission dedicated to marine conservation and preservation, and a staff just as passionate about the same. We try and promote a sense of compassion and encourage a desire to protect marine animals, and the ecosystems they call home.
The dedicated staff I work with are the backbone of the conservation initiatives, animal rescue missions, and rehabilitation efforts we, as a marine animal sanctuary, hold so dear. Whether it’s working to reduce the impacts of plastic pollution, freeing endangered grey nurse sharks entangled in fishing gear, or nursing a stranded sea turtle back to health, it’s these amazing people I call my co-workers, who drive these efforts, and I am proud to be a part of that team. While news of endangered animals, climate change, and habitat loss is becoming more common, I truly believe that it is people like the ones who I work with every day that will make the difference.
A CONSCIOUS COMMUNITY
This passion is also evident in the community as a whole. Dive clubs, activists, motivated individuals, businesses – people are using their collective dedication and support of one another as a platform for change. They set goals and they will work relentlessly to achieve them, despite also having busy and sometimes chaotic lives. And this effort is not centred on only one initiative, but is spread across multiple fronts at once, everything from making beaches safe without culling sharks, to setting up marine reserves, to encouraging businesses to be more sustainable. Although people have their own projects and their own goals, they all seem to align behind a bigger picture that is the preservation of an amazing natural world. These are the people that make what can sometimes seem like a dim future for conservation a whole lot brighter.
SURVEYING SYDNEY’S SEAHORSES
Sydney is home to a large variety of seahorse, sea dragon, and pipefish species, as well the ideal habitats in which they can thrive. These are remarkable creatures to see in the wild, and something that divers travel great distances for. Unfortunately, determining their conservation status is difficult, and many are described as “Data Deficient” on the IUCN Red List. This is where the survey comes in.
Manly Sealife Sanctuary is conveniently located adjacent to a net-enclosed swimming area and surrounding seagrass beds, which are known to house seahorses. Initially we began surveys with divers from the sanctuary who would collect data and photo identifications on the individual seahorses living in the survey area.
A CATASTROPHIC STORM
Then, last year, Sydney was hit with several severe storms that essentially destroyed the nets and surrounding seagrass beds and effectively stopped our survey just as it was generating vital data: The area went from having over 150 seahorses to fewer than 10 on the first survey after the storms.
Remarkably, it seems as though the majority of those seahorses did not perish, but simply moved somewhere safer, and returned to the nets once the seas had calmed.
Despite some seahorses returning, the fact remained their habitat had been severely damaged. Thankfully, our researched had shown that this was a special habitat and so the local council decided to replace the nets and restore the ecosystem. This project required stripping away the damaged net and replacing it with a new one. The only problem was the existing seahorses had already reoccupied the old damaged net.
MISSION RELOCATE
The last thing we wanted to do was harm these animals so we temporarily relocated them to a stretch of net that was would serve as a sort of brief holding area while their homes were refurbished. A total of 113 seahorses were relocated by divers that day, prior to the works being completed. Fast forward to now, where this new net has established and supports a complex ecosystem of kelp, barnacles, oysters,
and sponges, and created an ideal environment not just for seahorses, but for a huge variety of sealife.
THE SURVEY SPREADS!
With the net replacement came an opportunity to expand our survey. We have now teamed up with the people who replaced the nets, and their dive club. Instead of only surveying seahorses at a single location, we now include weedy seadragons, and have broadened the research area to include more of Sydney, and opened it up to public volunteers from all over the region.
Participants now join us for an orientation where we give information on the natural history of Sygnathids, best diving practices when in their habitats, and the best methods for photo identification. The majority of our volunteer base is formed by dive clubs and centres, and Sealife staff. Once volunteers complete the orientation, they are given access to our online database where they can geotag and upload their images from across Sydney. The project is growing, and the future for Sydney’s seahorses is looking up.