Marine recording
This is the collection of records from a variety of habitats from the shores and coastal waters of Northern Ireland, for example, sand, rock, gravel, seagrass and horse mussel beds.
Databases
The records collected from these habitats are made available to CEDaR (from a variety of sources), and these are ultimately stored (collated) on the Marine Recorder database (supplied by Joint Nature Conservation Committee) and the Marine database. There are currently 116,000+ biological records for Northern Ireland collated on the marine databases held by CEDaR.
Background
Records have been sourced from a number of individuals, groups and societies, primarily the surveys carried out by the National Museums Northern Ireland and Heriot-Watt University under contract to the Northern Ireland Environment Agency. A comprehensive data set for marine molluscs for the island of Ireland is also held at CEDaR.
Data exchange
This is currently under development.
Key datasets
Local, national and internationally important marine data sets are collated by CEDaR. These are subject to regular backup. If you have a specific enquiry, then contact us to discuss.
Who to contact
Julia Nunn, CEDAR for all general enquiries regarding marine records.
Lynne Rendle, Vertebrate Officer for all enquiries relating to cetacean and seal records.
Bernard Picton, Curator of Marine Invertebrates ‘Zoology staff list’ for identification enquiries.
Claire Goodwin, Marine Biologist for identification enquiries.
Contact +44 (0) 28 9042 8428
Local & national recording schemes
The Shore Thing is an initiative of MarLIN. the Marine Life Information Network, working with schools and volunteer recorders to collect information on the marine life of rocky shores around Britain.
It is now being extended to Northern Ireland. All the information collected will be made available online through the NBN Gateway and will help to build a picture of how things are now to measure change in the future.
Seasearch
Seasearch is a national project organised through the Marine Conservation Society, for volunteer sports divers who have an interest in what they're seeing under water, want to learn more and want to help protect the marine environment.
The main aim is to map the various types of sea bed found in the near-shore zone, up to about five miles off the coast or 30m depth around the whole of the British Isles. In addition, it records what lives in each area, establishing the richest sites for marine life, the sites where there are problems and the sites which need protection. Seasearch has been established in Northern Ireland since 2004, with a co-ordinator, Claire Goodwin, funded by Northern Ireland Environment Agency.
Porcupine Marine Natural History Society
Porcupine Marine Natural History Society is an informal society interested in marine natural history and recording, particularly in the North East Atlantic region and the Mediterranean Sea. The name “Porcupine” is taken from the naval survey vessel HMS Porcupine which was engaged on scientific expeditions in the N.E. Atlantic and Mediterranean in 1869 and 1870. She made the first ever deep ocean dredge for living creatures in 1869 resulting in the naming of the Porcupine Bank off the west coast of Ireland. PMNHS runs a recording scheme for its members and any other interested parties. This scheme is useful for collecting unstructured and informal records, that is, observations that are unlikely to be submitted to other schemes. Information from records is published in the society's newsletter, making the information widely available.
Conchological Society of Great Britain and Ireland
The Conchological Society of Great Britain and Ireland is devoted to the study of molluscs in its widest aspects for the benefit of the public. Snails, slugs, sea slugs, bivalves and most seashells are molluscs, as are octopus, squids, chitons (coat-of-mail shells), and limpets. Many of the marine bivalves are of commercial importance as a food source though out the world, including clams, cockles, oysters, razor shells, scallops and mussels. The Society promotes the study of molluscs and their conservation, through meetings, workshops, publications and distribution recording schemes. The Society runs a marine recording scheme which covers Britain and the entire island of Ireland, and projects which cover Britain and the entire island of Ireland.
Shark Trust
Established in 1997, the Shark Trust is the UK registered marine charity dedicated to promoting the study, management and conservation of sharks, skates, rays (elasmobranchs) and chimaera. The Trust runs a sightings scheme, and encourages the recording of eggcases (The Great Eggcase Hunt).
UK Marine Fish Recording Scheme
The National Aquarium in Plymouth, England runs the UK Marine Fish Recording Scheme. The scheme welcomes records from anglers, divers, fishermen, sailors and the general public, as well as scientists, to enable it to build up a comprehensive and reliable source of information on the fish of the seas and estuaries around the British Isles. This is considered to be crucial at a time when fish populations face all kinds of threats and our coastal areas are subjected to considerable environmental change.
Irish Whale and Dolphin Group
The Irish Whale and Dolphin Group is dedicated to the conservation and better understanding of whales, dolphins and porpoise in Irish waters. The Group operates a sightings scheme. The sightings scheme is where members of the public, birdwatchers, skippers, captains, deck- hands, surfers, divers, pilots and whale-watchers can report any sightings of whales, dolphins or porpoises in Irish waters. For those who are (or want to become) whale-watchers, the Group runs a scheme where people are asked to watch a specific stretch of water for one hour a week. This allows the distribution of whales around our coast to be determined and to estimate their numbers. The Group also conducts workshops to train interested groups in the techniques of handling stranded cetaceans, and is interested in all records of strandings.
British Phycological Society
The British Phycological Society aims to encourage all aspects of the study of algae, both marine and freshwater. The Society recently published a checklist and Atlas of the seaweeds of Britain and Ireland. The recording scheme in the island of Ireland is coordinated by Prof. Michael Guiry, Director of the Martin Ryan Institute, Galway.
If you have a marine recording scheme in Northern Ireland that you would like to be listed here, please contact Julia Nunn on +44 (0) 28 9042 8428.
