With the school holidays approaching and the transition into alert level one, there is plenty of reason to get outdoors and have a look at what is on your seashore. Don't forget to take one of our foldout shore guides with you so you know what you are looking at! We have also listed some additional helpful resources below that may be worth looking into.
Shore Guides
Our foldout shore guides provide a great overview of the most common species you may find on the shore and are an essential piece of equipment when doing a Mm2 survey. They are available in English and Te Reo Māori. Sometimes you may need to dive deeper into some other resources that can help you identify species on the shore. The Collins Field Guide to the New Zealand Seashore has everything from sea slugs to seaweeds and is a VERY handy addition on your explorations.
The New Zealand Marine Life app by Auckland Museum is an online field guide to common coastal species around New Zealand (very good for the Auckland/Northland regions!)
Not sure what you are looking at? Can't find something that matches what you are looking at on one of our guides? Have no fear! You can always get in touch with us via email or Facebook. Make sure you take a photo and record the location where you found your creature. You may also want to upload your photo onto iNaturalist where other users can help identify or verify species. There is even an iNaturalist app! Once you know what you found, be sure to update your Mm2 survey.
Identifying Marine Pests
We are launching a new social media campaign focussing on marine pests! Each Monday we will be posting a 'profile' on a species of marine pest that are causing some trouble in New Zealand waters. Being able to identify these marine pests is VERY important as it can help the Ministry of Primary Industries and Biosecurity New Zealand track the spread of these invasive species. You can download their Marine Pest ID Guide here. Make sure you follow our Facebook page to learn about these marine pests and how you can help!
New Resources Online!
Following on from our last newsletter, the instructions on how to use and make a 10 x 10 cm square, as well as the activity on re-assessing your substrate cover, are now LIVE on our website. Check them out here!
Keep Up to Date with Us!
Don't forget to follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @marinemetre2. On social media we post relevant articles and activities as well as share what our Mm2 community has been up to. So we want to hear from you! Whether it is finding something weird and wonderful or simply just a great day out exploring - get in touch with us so we can post it on social media or under 'Community Stories' on our website.
We have more suggestions on other guides under the 'Community Stories' tab on our website here. This will be updated when we find new resources. Feel free to let us know if you find something!
Up Next....
We will be going over graphs and how you can create a visual story of your seashore discoveries.
