Sea Shore Antics

[Melanie]

Hello
Regarding invertabrates on our shore..... they are not protected by any license and so get experimented on! Poor

things.

So the question in the polls is about invertabrates in general... but represented by crabs 'cus the title was amusing to moi )



Should invertabrates be protected with license as indeed are vertabrates?

I think:
nope, but self impose a reasonable limit to show care

[Amber]

Would agree Mel.
Universities always have experiments, both passive and intrusive on invertabrates of the seashore.
They are numerous,

frequent and still occupy littoral zone which is easy access........
This means it could effect them, but does not seem to have a detrimental effect that has been

registered (that im aware of)

So think no lisence neccessary, but self impose a reasonable limit to show care.

Amber

[natalie]

Licensing is a form of protection for species that may be thought to experience stresses, therefore needed for

scientific 'experimentation' to control what gets done to what... and probably so it has to be justified... justification is not a bad thing, I consider.

On a bigger

picture there is thought regarding where they live as well. Apart from wave exposure and position relative to the tide, the topography of the shore has an important

influence on the communities present. Boulders, gullies, pools, and overhangs provide a variety of micro-habitats as do areas of mixed substrate.

In England and

Wales the relevant Government departments are required to take steps in order to further the conservation of habitats as well as species listed in the UK Biodiversity

Action Plan (BAP).

Most threatened animals and plants cannot be properly protected without the conservation of their habitats. There are legal provisions for the

protection and management of of the actual areas where threatened species occur.

Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSIs), National Nature Reserves and

Marine Nature Reserves) are selected and protected under British law because they are examples of important habitats and often contain rare animals or plants.