Hi MARMAM people in the southwest UK,

South West Marine Ecosystems 2015

March 13^th PML Plymouth

Programme

The 2015 South West Marine Ecosystems Meeting (SWME) meeting will take place in the new lecture theatre at the Plymouth Marine Laboratory (PML http://www.pml.ac.uk/Contact-us ) on Friday March 13th. The format and content will be similar to previous years with a mix of long and short presentations and good time for discussion and networking. Thanks to the generosity of PML the price will remain the same at £15 to help attract the widest range of people and in particular volunteers, students interested this area of work. The full programme is set out below but the objectives of the meeting include:

1. Networking To provide a networking opportunity for a wide cross section of people to meet and exchange views on south-west marine ecosystems; this would include active support for volunteer observations and schemes (citizen science), marine science and research interests, managers and a range of sea users including nature conservation, fishing, tourism etc.

2. To assess the annual events – ecological and oceanographic - of the previous year that have affected the south west marine ecosystems – making the linkages between environmental and biological phenomena e.g. SST on plankton or mackerel and cetaceans. We will be asking delegates to contribute their observations on 2014.

3. Ecology of marine species To explore research studies that throw particular light on aspects of ecology of marine species, planktonic, benthic and ‘mobile’ species (fish, birds, mammals, turtles) and the ecosystem that supports them and to understand the status of populations of marine species in the south west and how they are responding to environmental and anthropogenic pressures

4. Management and southwest marine ecosystems To understand the linkages between science to managing human activities the marine environment with a view to supporting and promoting the health of southwest marine ecosystems

Programme

Version Jan 15^th 2015 Bold = confirmed Timings may change

Session 1 Weather, Events & Observations in 2014, Oceanography

8.45 Registration and refreshments

9.30 Welcome and Introduction to the day Chair:

9.35 Events & observations in 2014: Delegates will be invited to bring along and comment

on the events and their observations of 2014 using structured approach,

facilitated by Bob Earll CMS, Hannah & Duncan Jones Marine Discovery

10.00 Update on SW Plankton Abigail McQuatters-Gollop SAHFOS

10.15 Brendan Godley Exeter University Jellyfish Records – Paper – Citizen Science tbc

10.30 Ocean front metrics for understanding foraging locations of gannets and basking sharks

Peter Miller PML and Kylie Scales PML/Univ. Plymouth/NOAA-ERD, Monterey, US

10.45 Results of the multiple remote vehicle trial to measure multi-trophic level interactions

Russell Wynn NOC

11.00 -11.20 Discussion with the previous four speakers

11.20 -25 The south west Fulmar project Alice Trevail

11.25 -30 The Coastal Code Practical guidance for south-west coastal species

Cornwall Wildlife Trust speaker to be confirmed

11.30 First break: Sandwiches and refreshments

12.10 Session 2 Fish and sea bed ecology Chair:

12.10 Overfishing and the replacement of demersal finfish by shellfish: an example from the

English Channel Jason Hall-Spencer Plymouth University

12.30 Skate populations in the south-west Cat Gordon & John Richardson Shark Trust

12.50 The status of basking sharks in the south-west Tom Horton CWT & Marine Discovery

13.10 Storm impacts on the seabed in protected and fished areas Emma Sheehan

Plymouth University

13.30 What is site integrity? Applying current ecological knowledge to evolving marine policy

Sian Rees Plymouth University

13.50 Intertidal discovery – results of the recent survey Carolyn Waddell, CWT

14.10 – 14.50 Second break: Cakes and refreshments

14.50 Session 3 Using science to inform marine management Chair:

14.50 The developing outcomes of rat eradication programmes on south-west Islands

Paul St Pierre RSPB

15.10 Seals and shipping noise Clare Embling Plymouth University

15.30 From observations to action….using research data to inform global campaign – the impacts

of lost fishing gear on grey seals. Sue Sayer Cornwall Seal Group & Bex Allen

15.50 The ecology of porpoises in the south-west – what’s left to find out? An interactive session

with audience and organisational inputs Facilitated by Bob Earll CMS

16.20 Inspiring images! Hannah & Duncan Jones Marine Discovery

16.30 Close and refreshments

Booking is essential, please get the form from the SWME Website.

Regards,

Peter Miller

Dr Peter Miller <pim@pml.ac.uk> http://rsg.pml.ac.uk

Remote Sensing Group, Plymouth Marine Laboratory, Prospect Place, Plymouth PL1 3DH, UK.

Phone: +44 (0)1752 633481, Fax: ...633101, LinkedIn, ResearchGate, ICES WGHABD, Marine Vertebrates.