Seasearch: exploring Sussex's underwater world

admin
, 08 October 2017
Seasearch: exploring Sussex's underwater world
Common starfish / Jess Mead

By Sarah Ward

Living Seas Officer

This August, I had the pleasure of organising a day of scuba diving for some volunteer divers as part of our Seasearch programme. After a very early start, we loaded up the boat with all the dive gear and cameras, and headed off from Eastbourne Marina out into the Beachy Head East recommended Marine Conservation Zone (rMCZ). As if on cue, the sun broke through the clouds and we were soon steaming under blue skies with a gentle breeze. Having planned the day months in advance, needless to say I was more than pleased!

Our task for the day was to collect data on the underwater habitats within the Beachy Head East rMCZ. This information can be used as evidence by statutory bodies for use in the upcoming consultation on Tranche 3 MCZs, as well as contributing to Seasearch’s UK-wide database on underwater environments. What’s more, it’s also really interesting to see what’s down there!

We carefully selected two sites to survey: the first site was a few miles offshore from Bexhill-on-Sea, a large area which had never been surveyed before by Seasearch divers (we named the site ‘Bexhill Mussel Garden’); the second was on a rocky reef area offshore from Eastbourne, known as the Horse of Willingdon Reef.

Whilst we can predict some of the animals which might be using the area based upon information already known about physical factors, such as sea bed type and water depth, we can never know exactly what’s there without taking a look for ourselves. Neither of the sites was disappointing and the divers returned to the boat excited to share what they had seen and look through the photos and videos they had taken.

Seasearchers are experienced scuba divers who have undertaken training in identification skills and habitat classification. Following their dives they will complete a form detailing the habitat, seabed cover and species encountered. This is then entered into a large national dataset which covers the whole of the British Isles. The divers observed a variety of different species, including mussels, crabs, catsharks, plaice, and even a spotted ray!

Many scuba divers carry underwater cameras, which is particularly useful when surveying as often a camera captures detail that the diver may not see at the time, as well as providing a reference to look back on. Our volunteer divers have kindly provided some footage from the dive at Bexhill Mussel Garden which can be viewed below!

Seasearch is a partnership between Marine Conservation Society, The Wildlife Trusts, statutory nature conservation bodies and others, coordinated nationally by MCS and coordinated and delivered locally in Sussex by Sussex Wildlife Trust. Please click here for more information.

Seasearch volunteers – happy after two successful dives! / Sarah Ward

Leave a comment

Comments

  • Bernadette Fitton:

    Hello please can you tell me how I can get involved, I am a aow diver and shipwreck diver and am currently studying marine zoology. I live in Hailsham nr eastbourne many thanks and look forward to hearing from you .

    18 Mar 2018 11:51:57

Time Δ Debug Message - Perch Runway 3.2
1788357920.99720 [907] SELECT p.pagePath, pr.routePattern, pr.routeRegExp, p.pageTemplate, pr.routeOrder, s.settingValue AS siteOffline FROM swt_pages_staging p LEFT JOIN swt_page_routes pr ON p.pageID=pr.pageID LEFT JOIN swt_settings s ON s.settingID='siteOffline' UNION SELECT NULL AS pagePath, pr2.routePattern, pr2.routeRegExp, pr2.templatePath AS pageTemplate, pr2.routeOrder, NULL AS siteOffline FROM swt_page_routes pr2 WHERE templateID!=0 ORDER BY routeOrder ASC, pagePath ASC
1788357921.03360.0364Matched route: news/[slug:s]
1788357921.03370.0001Server address: 216.73.216.54
1788357921.03380Using master page: /templates/pages/blog/post.php
1788357921.03380Page arguments: 
Array
(
    [0] => /news/seasearch-exploring-sussexs-underwater-world
    [s] => seasearch-exploring-sussexs-underwater-world
    [1] => seasearch-exploring-sussexs-underwater-world
)
1788357921.03410.0003 [1] SELECT * FROM swt_pages_staging WHERE pagePath='/news/post' LIMIT 1
1788357921.03540.0013 [86] SELECT DISTINCT settingID, settingValue FROM swt_settings WHERE userID=0
1788357921.03790.0025 [1] SELECT locationID FROM swt_shop_tax_locations WHERE locationIsHome=1 LIMIT 1
1788357921.03870.0008INSERT INTO swt_shop_cart(memberID,locationID,currencyID,cartPricing,cartProperties) VALUES(NULL,'1',47,'standard','[]')
1788357921.04810.0094 [1] SELECT * FROM swt_shop_cart WHERE cartID=24723612
1788357921.04910.001 [1] SELECT * FROM swt_shop_cart WHERE cartID=24723612
1788357921.05030.0011 [nil] SELECT * FROM swt_shop_sales WHERE saleFrom<='2026-09-02 14:05:00' AND saleTo>'2026-09-02 14:05:00' AND saleActive=1 AND saleDeleted IS NULL ORDER BY saleOrder ASC
1788357921.05210.0018 [1] SELECT SQL_CALC_FOUND_ROWS DISTINCT tbl.* FROM ( SELECT idx.itemID, main.*, idx2.indexValue as sortval FROM swt_blog_index idx JOIN swt_blog_posts main ON idx.itemID=main.postID AND idx.itemKey='postID' JOIN swt_blog_index idx2 ON idx.itemID=idx2.itemID AND idx.itemKey='postID' AND idx2.indexKey='_id' WHERE 1=1 AND ((idx.indexKey='postSlug' AND idx.indexValue='seasearch-exploring-sussexs-underwater-world')) AND idx.itemID=idx2.itemID AND idx.itemKey=idx2.itemKey GROUP BY idx.itemID, idx2.indexValue, postID ) as tbl WHERE (postStatus='Published' AND postDateTime<='2026-09-02 14:05:00' ) GROUP BY itemID, sortval ORDER BY sortval ASC LIMIT 0, 10
1788357921.05660.0045 [1] SELECT FOUND_ROWS() AS `count`
1788357921.05740.0008 [1] SELECT * FROM swt_blog_posts WHERE postID=1432 AND postStatus='Published' AND postDateTime<='2026-09-02 14:05:00'
1788357921.05870.0012 [13] SELECT * FROM swt_blog_sections ORDER BY sectionTitle ASC
1788357921.05990.0012 [1] SELECT * FROM swt_blogs ORDER BY blogTitle ASC
1788357921.06080.001 [1] SELECT * FROM swt_categories WHERE catID=44 LIMIT 1
1788357921.06180.001Using template: /templates/blog/post.html
1788357921.06220.0003 [162] SELECT catID, catPath FROM swt_categories
1788357921.06330.0012 [1] SELECT * FROM swt_blog_posts WHERE postStatus='Published' AND postDateTime<='2026-09-02 14:05:00' AND postSlug='seasearch-exploring-sussexs-underwater-world'
1788357921.09430.031Using template: /templates/blog/post.html
1788357921.09480.0005 [250] SELECT country, countryID FROM swt_shop_countries WHERE countryActive=1 ORDER BY country ASC
1788357921.09680.0019Using template: /templates/pages/attributes/seo.html
1788357921.0970.0003 [1] SELECT regionID, regionTemplate, regionPage, regionRev AS rev FROM swt_content_regions WHERE regionKey='Banner image' AND (regionPage='/news/post' OR regionPage='*')
1788357921.09810.001 [nil] SELECT * FROM ( SELECT idx.itemID, c.regionID, idx.pageID, c.itemJSON, idx2.indexValue as sortval FROM swt_content_index idx JOIN swt_content_items c ON idx.itemID=c.itemID AND idx.itemRev=c.itemRev AND idx.regionID=c.regionID JOIN swt_content_index idx2 ON idx.itemID=idx2.itemID AND idx.itemRev=idx2.itemRev AND idx2.indexKey='_order' WHERE ((idx.regionID=104 AND idx.itemRev=0)) AND idx.itemID=idx2.itemID AND idx.itemRev=idx2.itemRev ) as tbl GROUP BY itemID, pageID, itemJSON, sortval, regionID ORDER BY sortval ASC
1788357921.09960.0015 [82] SELECT * FROM swt_pages_staging WHERE pageNew=0 AND pageHidden=0 AND pageDepth >=0 AND pageDepth<=2 ORDER BY pageTreePosition ASC
1788357921.10490.0053 [1] SELECT pageTreePosition FROM swt_pages_staging WHERE pagePath='/news/post' LIMIT 1
1788357921.10590.001 [2] SELECT pageID FROM swt_pages_staging WHERE pageTreePosition IN ('000-006-001', '000-006', '000') ORDER BY pageTreePosition DESC
1788357921.10890.003Using template: /templates/navigation/ps_nav_template.html
1788357921.1090.0001 [6] Using template: /templates/navigation/ps_nav_template_children.html
1788357921.10990.001 [4] Using template: /templates/navigation/ps_nav_template_children.html
1788357921.11070.0007 [29] Using template: /templates/navigation/ps_nav_template_children.html
1788357921.11380.0032 [10] Using template: /templates/navigation/ps_nav_template_children.html
1788357921.11510.0013 [7] Using template: /templates/navigation/ps_nav_template_children.html
1788357921.11590.0008 [9] Using template: /templates/navigation/ps_nav_template_children.html
1788357921.11870.0027 [1] SELECT pageTreePosition FROM swt_pages_staging WHERE pagePath='/news/post' OR pageSortPath='/news/post' LIMIT 1
1788357921.11990.0012 [1] SELECT * FROM swt_pages_staging WHERE pageHidden=0 AND pageNew=0 AND pageTreePosition IN ('000-006-001', '000-006', '000') ORDER BY pageTreePosition
1788357921.12310.0033 [1] Using template: /templates/navigation/breadcrumbs.html
1788357921.12370.0006Using template: /templates/blog/post.html
1788357921.1240.0003 [1] SELECT * FROM swt_blog_authors WHERE authorID='1' LIMIT 1
1788357921.12520.0011Using template: /templates/blog/author.html
1788357921.12560.0004 [1] SELECT SQL_CALC_FOUND_ROWS DISTINCT tbl.* FROM ( SELECT idx.itemID, main.*, idx2.indexValue as sortval FROM swt_blog_index idx JOIN swt_blog_posts main ON idx.itemID=main.postID AND idx.itemKey='postID' JOIN swt_blog_index idx2 ON idx.itemID=idx2.itemID AND idx.itemKey='postID' AND idx2.indexKey='_id' WHERE 1=1 AND ((idx.indexKey='postSlug' AND idx.indexValue='seasearch-exploring-sussexs-underwater-world')) AND idx.itemID=idx2.itemID AND idx.itemKey=idx2.itemKey GROUP BY idx.itemID, idx2.indexValue, postID ) as tbl WHERE (postStatus='Published' AND postDateTime<='2026-09-02 14:05:00' ) GROUP BY itemID, sortval ORDER BY sortval ASC LIMIT 0, 1
1788357921.12880.0031 [1] SELECT FOUND_ROWS() AS `count`
1788357921.12960.0008 [1] Using template: /templates/blog/post.html
1788357921.13230.0028Using template: /templates/blog/comment_form.html
1788357921.13360.0013 [1] SELECT * FROM swt_blog_comments WHERE 1=1 AND postID=1432 AND commentStatus='LIVE' ORDER BY FIELD(webmentionType, 'like', 'repost', 'comment', NULL) ASC, commentDateTime ASC
1788357921.21730.0837 [1] Using template: /templates/blog/comment.html
1788357921.21810.0008Using template: /templates/blog/post.html
1788357921.21830.0002 [1] SELECT * FROM swt_blog_authors WHERE authorID='1' LIMIT 1
1788357921.21940.001 [1] SELECT pageID, pageParentID, pageDepth, pageTreePosition FROM swt_pages_staging WHERE pagePath='/what-we-do' OR pageSortPath='/what-we-do' LIMIT 1
1788357921.22060.0012 [1] SELECT pageID, pageParentID, pageDepth, pageTreePosition FROM swt_pages_staging WHERE pageTreePosition='000-002' LIMIT 1
1788357921.22150.0009 [7] SELECT * FROM swt_pages_staging WHERE pageNew=0 AND pageHidden=0 AND pageTreePosition LIKE '000-002%' AND pageDepth >=1 AND pageDepth<=2 ORDER BY pageTreePosition ASC
1788357921.22840.0069 [1] SELECT pageTreePosition FROM swt_pages_staging WHERE pagePath='/news/post' LIMIT 1
1788357921.23350.0052 [2] SELECT pageID FROM swt_pages_staging WHERE pageTreePosition IN ('000-006-001', '000-006', '000') ORDER BY pageTreePosition DESC
1788357921.23660.0031 [6] Using template: /templates/navigation/footer-nav.html
1788357921.23750.0008 [1] SELECT pageID, pageParentID, pageDepth, pageTreePosition FROM swt_pages_staging WHERE pagePath='/make-a-difference' OR pageSortPath='/make-a-difference' LIMIT 1
1788357921.23840.0009 [1] SELECT pageID, pageParentID, pageDepth, pageTreePosition FROM swt_pages_staging WHERE pageTreePosition='000-005' LIMIT 1
1788357921.23910.0007 [38] SELECT * FROM swt_pages_staging WHERE pageNew=0 AND pageHidden=0 AND pageTreePosition LIKE '000-005%' ORDER BY pageTreePosition ASC
1788357921.24240.0033 [1] SELECT pageTreePosition FROM swt_pages_staging WHERE pagePath='/news/post' LIMIT 1
1788357921.24330.0009 [2] SELECT pageID FROM swt_pages_staging WHERE pageTreePosition IN ('000-006-001', '000-006', '000') ORDER BY pageTreePosition DESC
1788357921.24620.0029 [10] Using template: /templates/navigation/footer-nav.html
1788357921.25020.0039 [1] SELECT pageID, pageParentID, pageDepth, pageTreePosition FROM swt_pages_staging WHERE pagePath='/visit' OR pageSortPath='/visit' LIMIT 1
1788357921.25270.0025 [1] SELECT pageID, pageParentID, pageDepth, pageTreePosition FROM swt_pages_staging WHERE pageTreePosition='000-004' LIMIT 1
1788357921.25360.001 [30] SELECT * FROM swt_pages_staging WHERE pageNew=0 AND pageHidden=0 AND pageTreePosition LIKE '000-004%' AND pageDepth >=1 AND pageDepth<=2 ORDER BY pageTreePosition ASC
1788357921.25730.0037 [1] SELECT pageTreePosition FROM swt_pages_staging WHERE pagePath='/news/post' LIMIT 1
1788357921.25820.0009 [2] SELECT pageID FROM swt_pages_staging WHERE pageTreePosition IN ('000-006-001', '000-006', '000') ORDER BY pageTreePosition DESC
1788357921.26150.0033 [29] Using template: /templates/navigation/footer-nav.html
1788357921.26480.0032 [1] SELECT pageID, pageParentID, pageDepth, pageTreePosition FROM swt_pages_staging WHERE pagePath='/make-a-difference' OR pageSortPath='/make-a-difference' LIMIT 1
1788357921.26580.001 [1] SELECT pageID, pageParentID, pageDepth, pageTreePosition FROM swt_pages_staging WHERE pageTreePosition='000-005' LIMIT 1
1788357921.26670.0009 [11] SELECT * FROM swt_pages_staging WHERE pageNew=0 AND pageHidden=0 AND pageTreePosition LIKE '000-005%' AND pageDepth >=1 AND pageDepth<=2 ORDER BY pageTreePosition ASC
1788357921.26990.0032 [1] SELECT pageTreePosition FROM swt_pages_staging WHERE pagePath='/news/post' LIMIT 1
1788357921.27060.0008 [2] SELECT pageID FROM swt_pages_staging WHERE pageTreePosition IN ('000-006-001', '000-006', '000') ORDER BY pageTreePosition DESC
1788357921.27360.003 [10] Using template: /templates/navigation/footer-nav.html
1788357921.27490.0013Request time: 0.2797
1788357921.27490Process time: 0.2795
1788357921.27490Memory: 1.6274