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SANCOR’S CURRENCY AND STRENGTH IS INFORMATIONDate: September—October 2012ISSN 03700-9026 Issue #: 200SANCOR NEWSLETTERSouth African Network for Coastal and Oceanic ResearchInside this issue:GEF-UNDP publicationsfeature LMEsNegotiating knowledge forcoastal governanceThe African Marine Atlasof ODINAFRICAGlobal network for oceanacidificationMonitoring coastaldynamics from spaceThe inaugural winter cruiseof the SA Agulhas IIHow healthy are ourdolphins really?456781113BASICally – It works! 15Ma-Re Students Network– get involved!A different kind of Carnival- Rio +20 dialoguesScience education—gettingthe message acrossMCEN NationalConference 201215161718Mandela Day Celebrations 19Kudos to Larry Hutchings 20Tribute toRudy van der Elst22Accelerated eddies moving aroundAfrica’s southern tipBy Bjorn Backeberg 1,2 , Pierrick Penven 2,3 ,& Mathieu Rouault 1,21Nansen-Tutu Centre forMarine Environmental Research;2Oceanography Department, University ofCape Town; 3 Institut de Recherche pour leDéveloppement, FranceOver the past 10 years, researchof the Agulhas Current hasreceived increasing aenonfrom the global scienfic community. Andrecently, the Agulhas has become recognisedas a key element inthe global climatesystem. A SCORworking groupinvesgang theclimac importanceof the greaterAgulhas system wasformed and areview paper waspublished in Naturein 2011.In the Departmentof Oceanography atthe University ofCape Town,researchers fromthe Nansen‐Tutu Centre for MarineEnvironmental Research, the Instut deRecherche pour le Développement under theInternaonal Centre for Educaon, Marine andAtmospheric Sciences over Africa and theMarine Research Instute have been workingtogether to advance our understanding of theAgulhas system.The Agulhas Current is a western boundarycurrent located at the western edge of theIndian Ocean basin. It flows southward alongthe East Coast of South Africa, and is countedamong the fastest currents in world’s ocean.In the North Atlanc, heat from the ocean causes it to become denserand sink, driving the great ocean conveyor belt that transportsheat from the equator to the poles. Freshwater input from themelng glaciers on Greenland may cause the conveyor belt to shutdown.

Page 2SANCOR NEWSLETTER #200Surface velocies up to 2 m/s (~7 km/h)have been measured in the Agulhas, and atthe 30º latude, “our” current is significantlystronger when compared to its NorthernHemisphere counterparts: the Gulf Streamand the Kuroshio Current.The main funcon of western boundarycurrents are to transport warm tropicalwaters from the equator toward the poles,redistribung ocean heat and making thehigher latudes warmer. They form a vitalcomponent of the global oceanic conveyorbelt, whose role is to distribute heat oceanheat across the world’s ocean, therebyaffecng global climate and change.The conveyor belt system begins nearGreenland and Iceland in the North Atlanc.As the warmth of the Gulf Stream is lost tothe cold winds from Canada, the watersbecome denser and sink, forming a deepocean water mass known as North AtlancDeep Water. The newly formed water massthen flows southward along the sea floor to26‐27 Nov 197810‐13 Dec 197814‐27 Dec 1978The shedding of an Agulhas Ring observedfrom satellite infrared imagery.Agulhas Rings transport heat and saltinto the Atlanc Ocean vital for maintainingour present day climate. CourtesyLutjeharms and van Ballegooyen,1988.the Antarcc Connent whereit connues eastwards,warming and mixing as is goesand ulmately resurfaces in thePacific. Thereaer, it flows backto the North Atlanc along thesurface, compleng the globalconveyor and distribungocean heat across the globe. Ina warming climate, melng ofthe ice‐sheets from Greenlandand the Arcc might slow downor even stop the global oceanicconveyor belt. The AgulhasCurrent is an integral link in theglobal oceanic conveyor belt,transporng warm and saltywaters from the Indian to theAtlanc Ocean. This occurs directly south ofAfrica, where large Agulhas Rings (eddiescontaining warm and salty, tropical waters)are shed into the Atlanc Ocean. This “ringshedding” process is known as the Agulhasleakage, and is considered to be the mainmechanism through which warm and saltywaters are transported into the AtlancOcean.Paleoclimac studies, combined withsimulaons from numerical models havesuggested that an Agulhas leakage shutdownis associated with extreme glacial periods,whereas a vigorous increase has precededshis towards interglacials. These changesare largely associated with the thermohalinecirculaon driving the ocean conveyor belt,otherwise termed the MeridionalOverturning Circulaon. It now appears thatthe input of warm, salty waters from theAgulhas into the Atlanc Ocean is vital interms of counter‐acng the recentfreshening in the North Atlanc due to icemelt.Despite the monumental advancements intechnology, sampling the ocean remains acostly task. Observaons of the ocean areSea surface temperatures measurements of the AgulhasCurrent from SEVIRI overlaid with geostrophiccurrents derived from almetry measurements of thesea level. Courtesy: Marjolaine Krug (CSIR - EarthObservaon).limited to its surface from satellites, or pointmeasurements by ship‐borne orautonomous instruments. Numerical oceanmodels that represent ocean circulaonmathemacally allow us to gain deeperunderstanding of processes occurring in theocean. Because of the paucity of oceanobservaons, in parcular for the AgulhasCurrent and Southern Ocean, studies ofthese regions have relied heavily onnumerical models. These models haverevealed a possible increase in Agulhasleakage and have implied climate relatedchanges on a global scale.However, the Agulhas Current is one of themost difficult regions in the world to modelaccurately. This is because of its extremelyturbulent nature and our limitedunderstanding of the processes that drivethe system. The ocean dynamics in theAgulhas are largely dominated by eddies andmeanders of the order of 100’s ofkilometers. Model simulaons of thesefeatures vary significantly as these aredependent on the resoluon of the model,and the parameters used to specifyprocesses that we cannot resolve explicitlysuch as mixing, viscosity and diffusion. In

Page 6SANCOR NEWSLETTER #200The African Marine Atlas of ODINAFRICABy Anja KreinerNational Information and ResearchCentre, NamibiaThe Ocean Data and InformaonNetwork for Africa(ODINAFRICA) brings togethermarine related instuons fromtwenty seven (27) Member States of theIntergovernmental Oceanographic Commission(IOC) of UNESCO from Africa.With the support of the IOC of UNESCO andthe Government of Flanders (Kingdom ofBelgium) the network strives to address thechallenges faced in ensuring that ocean andcoastal data and informaon generated innaonal, regional and global programmesare readily available to a wide range of usersin an easily understandable format. The par‐cipang instuons constute a network ofODINAFRICA NODCs (Naonal OceanographicData Centers) which are part of the IODEnetwork of NODCs.The African Marine Atlas (AMA)(www.africanmarineatlas.org) is being developedunder the current phase of theODINAFRICA project. AMA will eventuallyform part of the Internaonal Coastal AtlasNetwork (ICAN).AMA provides a comprehensive resource forcoastal and marine informaon at regionaland naonal scale for decision makers andmarine sciensts. Target products and serviceswill be developed for naonal and regionalusers about the African coasts andoceans. AMA further provides an opportunityto build capacity for marine data management.The African Marine Atlas allows the user tosearch for available layers and view metadata.The five themes displayed in the atlasare: Atmosphere, Basemaps, Biosphere,Geosphere, Human and Hydrosphere. OpenMembers of the African Marine Atlas Editorial team: (from le toright) Anja Kreiner (Namibia), Angora Aman (Ivory Coast), Anis Diallo(Senegal), Yassine Lassoued (Ireland), John Bemiasa (Madagascar),Ednah Onduso (Kenya) and Zacharie Sohou (Benin)An example of layers included in the Namibian Naonal Atlassource data(e.g.WorldfromOcean Atlas)as well asnaonaldatasets aredisplayed intheLayers,whichatlas.addresspriorityissues atlocal,na‐onal and regional level, have been developed.Several workshops were held duringwhich atlas team members were equippedwith skills to develop the atlas on a naonalbasis.Inially the MIDA soware was used for theatlas. In 2012 the new soware (Smart Atlas)was developed. Smart Atlas is more userfriendlyand has addional features whichwere not available under MIDA.In July 2012 the atlas editorial team met inNairobi to test the new soware (SmartAtlas), to define the base layers to be includedin all naonal and regional atlases and tostandardize symbols and legends. In September2012 all naonal atlas team leaders willmeet in Nairobi to receive training on thenew soware and transfer the naonal layersto Smart Atlas.The final online atlas will consist of connental,regional (LME) and naonal components,each aiming to present data at the appropriatescale. We are aiming to have the firstversion of the atlas online by the end of October2012 and the final version in March2013.To read more about the ODINAFRICA project,please visit the websitewww.odinafrica.net

Page 7SANCOR NEWSLETTER #200A global network for monitoring ocean acidificationBy Louis Celliers & Pedro MonteiroCSIR - Natural Resources and the EnvironmentIn the wake of a naonal workshop onOcean Acidificaon (OA) that was convenedin Cape Town in November 2012, Drs LouisCelliers & Pedro Monteiro were invited toaend an Internaonal Workshop to Developan Ocean Acidificaon Observing Networkof Ship Surveys, Moorings, Floats andGliders. This event was held at the Universityof Washington, Seale June 26 ‐ June 28,2012. This workshop was supported by theNOAA Ocean Acidificaon Program, the InternaonalOcean Carbon Coordinaon Project,the Global Ocean Observing System, theIntegrated Ocean Observing System, and theUniversity of Washington. The details of theworkshop, list of parcipants, agenda andthe eventual outcomes will be available onthe workshop website.This internaonal workshop was convened inorder to develop a proposal for an integratedglobal observing network for both carbonand ocean acidificaon that addresses therequirements of naons affected by thisemerging environmental problem in responseto societal needs.The internaonal workshop had five principalgoals. Firstly it were to provide the ra‐onale and design of the components andlocaons of an internaonal carbon oceanacidificaon observing network that includesrepeat hydrographic surveys, underwaymeasurements on volunteer observing ships,moorings, floats and gliders, taking into accountexisng networks and programs whereverpossible;. Furthermore the workshopaimed to idenfy a minimum suite of measurementparameters and performance metricsfor each major component of the observingsystem; develop a strategy for dataquality assurance and data distribuon; anddiscuss requirements for program integra‐on at the internaonal level.The 3‐day workshop was held at the Universityof Washington on June 26‐28, 2012 for agroup of 50‐60 internaonal sciensts andprogram managers.It was clear from the level of ongoing andexisng monitoring that there is a mismatchbetween the infrastructure and capabiliesof developing naons and developed naons(as seen in the figure below).The cost of providing plaorms for anyocean monitoring remains high. This is nodifferent for the deployment, operaon andservicing of sensors for the measurement ofOA parameters. These costs are a barrier forthe use of plaorm such as ships, gliders andmoorings.The resultant limited skills andcapacity available in developing naons isthe cause of large geographical gaps in theexisng global monitoring coverage.TheSeale workshop parcipants, primarilyfrom the northern hemisphere, acknowledgedthese gaps and expressed their interestand commitmentto contributeto the developmentof a trulyglobal OA network.(For sciencemedia coverageof theworkshophere).visitSouth Africa,through the workof the CSIRSouthern OceansCarbon‐ClimateObservatory Ocean acidificaon monitoring plaorms by type as of 2012(SOCCO), is an (source).excepon to thegeneral lack of skills and infrastructure on For more informaon on coastal and oceanthe connent, and represents a collecon of acidificaon contact Louis Celliersworld‐class assets for OA monitoring. The (lcelliers@csir.co.za) or Pedro Monteirosuccess of SOCCO has resulted in the devel‐(pmonteir@csir.co.za) of the CSIR.opment of a CSIR funded project entledThe Sensivies and Vulnerabilies of SouthernAfrican Regional Seas and their EcosystemServices to Ocean Acidificaon (SAVES‐OA). This four year project, in collaboraonwith other partners such as ACCESS, SAEONand DEA, will create the basis for the incep‐on of coastal OA monitoring in South Africa,and provide a plaorm for discussions onregional OA monitoring. The Western IndianOcean region, through the work of CSIR,WIOMSA, ASCLME and other instuons, isready to grow the capacity and skill to takepart in this global monitoring and scienceprogramme.South Africa is developing infrastructure,skills and capacity to play an acve role inthe fledgling global OA community. Thepotenal impact of OA on coastal communi‐es of Southern and Eastern Africa is trulyfrightening and the ability to measure andpredict these impacts is no longer a luxury.

Page 8SANCOR NEWSLETTER #200Monitoring coastal dynamicsfrom spaceBy Melanie Lück-Vogel &Louis CelliersCSIR - Natural Resources & the EnvironmentThe coast of South Africa is a highly dynamicenvironment. Tidal influences, seasonal variaonsand the effects of storm events canrapidly and dramacally change the face ofthe shoreline. This is parcularly true forsandy beaches. Besides the natural forces,humans and their acvies shape the coastthrough the transformaon of the naturalenvironment to the sealed surfaces commonof urban selements, crop agriculture ormore subtle changes through the gradualdegradaon of dune vegetaon.As a coastal manager, some of the coastalprocesses have to be monitored over me todecide if, for instance, the retreat of a beachis just a seasonal and natural phenomenonor whether it is an anthropogenically‐drivenprocess which requires a management intervenon.However, the scale of monitoring isa challenge given the considerable length ofthe naonal coastline of more than 3,500km.As a result, the assessment of coastal processesand dynamics usually focuses on ”hotspots” of high economic value, such as urbanareas and ports. The assessment of rural andundeveloped coastal areas remains largelyunmonitored.However, thesecoasts which areconsidered tomake a limitedeconomic contribuonare becomingincreasinglyimportantsince they providenaturalgoods and servicesthe ruralcoastal communiesdepend on.Based on agrowingunderstandingofsuchecosystemsandgoodsservices,governmentsare starng torespond bypromongmanagementintervenonsFigure 1: Locaon of the test sites in South Africa and Mozambique.that will restoreColour image inlaid: details of Maputo image; A and B: areas dis-and played in figures 2 and 3.maintain theseservices. This is parcularly important forthe growing need to increase the resilienceof communies to the projected impacts ofglobal environmental change, parcularly forthe tropical African shores. As many of theconnental shores are predominately sandy,these coastal communies oen live in lowlyingareas exposed to natural hazards suchas storm surges and hurricanes. The forceand the frequency of such extreme eventsare expected to increase in the predictedfuture climate. The expectaons are that thenatural coastal environment will be changingfaster than we can monitor using tradionalmethods.Remote sensing technology can be employedto idenfy areas at risk from coastaland marine hazards by assisng with thecollecon and interpretaon of data overlarge areas, over me, while being fast, costeffecveand consistent in delivering informaonand data with high‐levels of accuracy.Some of the environmental earth observaonsatellites, such as the satellites of theLandsat family, have been in space since the1980s and can therefore provide informaonon the Earth dang back more than 25 years.The value of remote sensing for coastal managementpurposes has been recognised formany years, yet its full applicaon and benefitis sll to be realised in Africa.Figure 2: Subset of the Maputo image from 30 Oct 2001. Le: In this band combinaon of the Landsat image,dense and woody vegetaon shows in red, open non-woody vegetaon in green tones. Right: classificaonresult.

Page 9SANCOR NEWSLETTER #200The remote sensing unit of the CSIR CoastalSystems Research Group in Stellenboschexplored the use of space‐borne imagery forthe detecon and monitoring of coastal dynamics.The aim of the project was to provethat relevant land cover types and the posi‐on of their respecve borders can be extractedfrom satellite imagery in a pushbuonapproach. The push‐buon approachwas a requirement to ensure fast and efficientextracon of result for use in an opera‐onal coastal management environment.Such a system allows for the rapid, reliableand repeatable extracon of standardisedinformaon from a series of images overspace and me.Therefore it was decided to focus on theautomac detecon of beaches, coastalvegetaon, water (the ocean) and the surfzone. The posion of the waterline (as indicatorfor the shoreline) can then be extractedas the border between beach (or vegeta‐on) and ocean. When comparing imagesover me and taking into account dal varia‐on, changes in the posion of the waterline will reveal potenal erosion or accreonof the shore. The dal effect is of parcularimportance for shallow areas with greatinterdal ranges such as you would find inMozambique.We also extracted the surf zone, which is thenear‐shore area where the waves break. Forthe waves to break, the water needs a certainshallowness. Therefore, changes in thesurf zone can be taken as an indicator forchanges in the bathymetry which is the underwatershore topography. For example, adecreasing width of the surf zone might alertthe coastal manager of potenal erosionprocesses. Coastal stabilisaon measurescan then take place.We tested our approach on four coastallocaons which were Maputo Bay, Durban,Cape Agulhas and False Bay (Figure 1).Maputo Bay is characterised by a shallowsandy shore line which exposes large dalmudflats during low des. Using a Landsatimage which was taken at low de, the extensivemudflats could be detected (Figure30 Oct 2001low de2 Sep 2003high de23 Dec 2009high deFigure 3: Another subset of the Landsat image for Maputo. Le: False colour image,same as in Figure 2. Right: the respecve classificaon results. The same colourcode as in Figure 2 is used. White arrow indicates changes in submerged sandbank.The black stripes in the 2003 and 2009 images originate from an error in the originalLandsat images.2). Comparing the dal states of a series ofimages helps to interpret the classificaonresults. For instance, we know that the Maputoimage from 30 Oct 2001 (Figure 2 andFigure 3, top) was taken at low de. Extensiveinterdal mudflats are visible. In con‐trast, the images from 2 Sept 2003 and 23Dec 2009 (Figure 3, centre and boom) weretaken at high‐de. So their dal state is comparableand the images should look idencal.However, at the headland in the rightimage part (white arrow) there are differ‐

Page 10SANCOR NEWSLETTER #200ences visible. In the earlier years there wasan interdal sediment bank prelocated tothe p of the headland. In the 2001 low deimage, the sediment bank is exposed anddetected as mud flat in the classificaon. Inthe 2003 high‐de image the bank is inundated,but its presence sll indicated by thepink fringe of breaking waves at its easternextension. However, in the 2009 high‐deimage, this fringe is no longer visible, indicangthat the sand bank has eroded. Accordingto local experts this erosion tookplace during a storm‐event in the periodbetween the acquisions of the images.Cape Agulhas is South Africa’s southernmostand sparsely populated land p. The shore isrelavely low, with a mixture of rocks andsandy beaches. The classificaon of theLandsat image from 14 May 2003 showslarge mobile dune fields in the Cape Agulhas/Struisbayregion (Figure 4). Also, as asurprise, the classificaon detected submergedvegetaon, probably kelp beds,close to the coast (red arrow in Figure 4).For this project, images of the Landsat 5 andLandsat 7 satellites with a pixel size of 30mhave been used. Their mulspectral sensorsThemac Mapper (TM) and Enhanced ThemacMapper plus (ETM+) onboard Landsat5 and 7 respecvely have been deliveringcomparable images since about 1984. Thismakes Landsat the best available satellite forlong term monitoring of environmental processesat a regional scale. A further advantageis that now the images can bedownloaded from the internet free of charge(for instance hp://glovis.usgs.gov/). Thismakes the assessment of coastlines even ona naonal scale affordable taking into consideraonthat e.g. South Africa’s coastline iscovered by about 20 Landsat images(compare Figure 1). However, for steepcoasts with narrow beaches spaally limitedbut relevant changes of the coast are likelynot to be detectable with Landsat. A retreatof the shoreline for 30 meters or more to bedetectable on a Landsat image might alreadybe a disastrous event for such areas. Forthose cases we will have to come up withsoluons using other satellites with a beerspaal resoluon. Potenal opons are usingSPOT 5 imagery (2.5‐20 m pixel size, ) orRapidEye (6.5 m pixel size, ), just to name afew.The results of the presented CSIR projectdemonstrate a soluon to assess the majorcoastal land cover types in a fast and efficientway and to monitor changes over me.It is in a ready‐to‐use state for environmentswhere the level of spaal detail provided byLandsat is sufficient, such as the shallowsandy coasts of the Western Indian Ocean.This approach can also easily be advanced toallow for the detecon of other relevantland cover types, such as mangroves, sedgesand selements for a more comprehensivepicture of dynamics of the coast as a baselinefor integrated coastal management solu‐ons.Vacancy forProfessor/Associate Professorin OceanographyThe University of Cape Town has astrong international reputation in oceanand climate research and teaching. Withinthe Department of Oceanography,particular areas of interest include theAgulhas and Benguela Current systems,the Southern Ocean, climate change andvariability, marine biogeochemistry andmesoscale meteorology. The departmentseeks to appoint a senior academic withresearch expertise in ocean, atmospheric,or climate modelling to complementand extend existing departmentalstrengths. The department has well developedcomputing facilities (includingaccess to the Centre for High PerformanceComputing), a marine biogeochemistrylaboratory, and access to shiptime for research cruises in the SouthAtlantic, South Indian and SouthernOceans.A PhD in Oceanography, AtmosphericScience, or related field is required. Theincumbent will be expected to contributestrongly to teaching at both undergraduateand postgraduate levels, develop his/her own research programme and raiseassociated research funding, and provideacademic leadership in the departmentand more generally within the Faculty ofScience.Figure 4: Subset of the Cape Agulhas Landsat image from 14 May 2003 and theclassificaon derived thereof. The red arrow indicates an area where vegetaonhas been detected in the water, probably kelp beds?Closing date for applications:1 October 2012Further details are available here.

Page 11SANCOR NEWSLETTER #200The inaugural winter cruise of the SA Agulhas IIBy Mthuthuzeli GulekanaDepartment of Environmental AffairsSouth Africa’s new polar ship, the SA AgulhasII, embarked on its inaugural cruise tothe Southern Ocean in July this year. Built inRauma, Finland, it was acquired for scienficresearch and supply (logiscs) purposes inthe South African research bases situated inthe Antarcca (SANAE IV) and the sub‐Antarcc islands of Prince Edward and Marion(hereaer referred to as “Marion Islands”).In early April 2012, the ownership of theR1.3 billion vessel was officially transferredto South Africa, under the custodianship ofthe Department of Environmental Affairs(DEA). At this handover funcon in Finland,the ship was dedicated to the memory ofMiriam Makeba, internaonal jazz arst andcivil rights acvist.On its arrival in South Africa in May, the shipwas christened by a sangoma (African spiritualhealer/doctor) who broke a calabash ofumqombhothi (African tradional beer) onthe ship’s hull to welcome it to South Africa.The arrival received extensive media coverageand aracted huge public interest. Theevent (coordinated by DEA) was aended bydignitaries including Minister of Environmentand Water Affairs, Ms Edna Molewa andDeputy Minister of Science and Technology,Mr Derek Hanekom.Welcome and christening of the SA Agulhas IIInaugural cruise track of the SA Agulhas IIWinter Shakedown CruiseAs the ship arrived, plans were already completedfor the mandatory inaugural or’shakedown’ cruise to the Southern Ocean,to test the ship’s scienfic equipment andmechanical capabilies to withstand theharsh and extreme condions that it wouldneed to endure for the next 30 years. Shakedowncruises also provide an opportunity tofamiliarise the operators with the vessel.Collaboraons were formed with sciensts,engineers and technicians from various instuonsand organisaons in South Africa toadvise DEA management on the assessmentof the ship’s capabilies.The major objecve was to sail the ship tothe Antarcc ice edge, in the SouthernOcean, where the ice is thick enough to testthe ship’s ice‐breaking capabilies (therewas insufficient sea ice in the Balc Sea). Thecruise track consisted of three legs: Leg 1: From Cape Town, towards theeast, southwest into the GreenwichMeridian Line and proceed to the iceedge Leg 2: From Ice‐edge northeastwardtowards Marion Island and finally Leg 3: from Marion Island northward toPort Elizabeth and finally to Cape Town(the cruise track is shown alongside).Each leg comprised of several staons wherethe Conducvity‐Temperature‐Depth (CTD)and eXpendable BathyThermograph (XBT)and Underway‐CTD’s (UCTD) were to bedeployed at predetermined locaons andmes. The Chief Scienst on this voyage, MrAshley Johnson (DEA), liaised with the shipofficers regarding crucial decisions aboutstaons. The Chief Scienst was assisted bytwo co‐principal invesgators (PIs), UCT’s Dr

Page 12SANCOR NEWSLETTER #200Isabelle Ansorge (Leg 1) and Dr AzwianewiMakhado of DEA (Legs 2 and 3) who reporteddirectly to the Chief Scienst. The PIs had,in turn, group leaders in their team to ensurethat the cruise was as successful as possibleand to ensure that all systems were testedfully. A muldisciplinary research team of 49members in total were deployed. Thesemembers included physical, chemical andbiological oceanographers, zoologists, meteorologists,engineers, electronic technicians,ornithologists, marine ecologists and shipbuildersamongst others.The 28‐day voyage was undertaken from 9July 2012 unl 6 August 2012. Researchersand students worked around the clock collecnga wide range of scienfic datathroughout the voyage. The last oceanographicsamples were collected during anunderway staon at midday on 1 August2012 aer which, as mandatory to all cruises,the scienfic equipment was switched offand/or packed away. Full analysis of thecollected data was to be processed in thefew coming weeks, with possible scienficand technical publicaons.SA Agulhas II docks in Eastern CapeAer sailing its maiden voyage to the SouthernOcean, the SA Agulhas II docked in PortElizabeth on 2 August 2012, to give membersof the public in that region an opportunity tolearn more about the vessel and its opera‐ons.The SA Agulhas II could not have arrived inthe mainland at a beer me, than to arriveat the start of August ‐ Women’s Month. Tomark this special month, an all‐women crew‐ from the pilot who guided the ship intoport to the quayside crew who safelystrapped the ship’s rope to the quay poles ‐ensured that the ship was secured in its reservedberth. It was clear: women were onduty.Once again, welcomed by dignitaries soonaer docking, the SA Agulhas II drew wideinterest from the media and the community.Eager to explore the vessel, 500 learnersfrom surrounding areas boarded the ship onFriday, 3 August. They clearly enjoyed thedemonstraons given by scienfic personnelin the laboratories. No doubt, the scholarshad set the tone for the open day on Saturday,4 August. Later termed the "PE Anaconda",the queue of eager public came from asfar afield as Uitenhage, Grahamstown, EastLondon and Port Elizabeth. At least 3000people aended the open day. The exhibitorsand demonstrators inside the ship weregiven no chance to relax as groups of 15‐20people were ushered in at a me, with theship’s crew playing a major role in controllingthe “traffic onboard” by direcng thegroups to the various designated stops andareas.The last group went down the gangplank at16h00 on Saturday. More than 3500 peoplehad seen the ship in two days. As a result ofthis overwhelming success, the SA Agulhas IIwas meant to sail from Port Elizabeth at17h00, the ETD (expected me of departure)was eventually moved to 21h00. Returningto Cape Town, this concluded a successfulwinter inaugural cruise.Spiraling queues of interested people came to view the vessel

Page 13SANCOR NEWSLETTER #200Dolphin pathology project—how healthy are our dolphins really?By Stephanie Plön 1,2 and Emily Lane 31South African Institute for Aquatic Biodiversity(SAIAB); 2 Bayworld; 3 National Zoological Gardensof South AfricaIt reads like a scene from a science ficonthriller: first about 900 dolphins and porpoiseswashed up dead on the beach, then almostas many pelicans. The sciensts werepuzzled—no‐one really knew what was causingthe mass die‐off ‐ and speculaons aboutthe possible reasons ranged from acousctrauma caused by seismic exploraon to avirus affecng both birds and mammalsalike.Unfortunately it is not a science ficon novel,but a harsh reality that recently playedout along Peru's North Pacific coastline. Suchincidences have to date only been knownfrom the Northern Hemisphere, such as theseal and dolphin die‐ offs from the North Seaand Mediterranean in the 1980's and early2000’s, which were caused by Phocine distempervirus and a previously unknown morbillivirus(the morbilliviruses are a group ofviruses including the human measles andcanine distemper viruses).To date we have been lucky here in SouthAfrica as we have not seen any such majordie‐offs involving marine mammals off ourcoastline. Although we record and expectlow levels of disease in wild populaons as anatural occurrence, it was surprising thenthat the same pathological changes visiblewith the naked eye were evident in almostall dolphins dissected during roune necropsiesat the KwaZulu‐Natal Sharks board in2009. Between 20 and 25 dolphins drown inthe shark nets off KwaZulu‐Natal every yearand since the early 1980’s sciensts from thePort Elizabeth Museum have made use ofthe opportunity to dissect these unfortunateanimals and to accession data and samplesfrom them to the Graham Ross MarineMammal collecon at the museum for themto be available for research purposes. Pastand present studies on these samples includeresearch on the morphometrics, genecs,life history parameters, and diet ofthese animals.But 2009 proved to be an unusual year asalmost all animals showed signs of someabnormalies on major organs, such as numerousblisters on the lining of the organsand in the abdominal cavity. What was goingon?Us tradionally trained marine biologistsunfortunately learn very lile about diseasesin the marine environment, so I knew I hadto seek expert input. Luckily someone suggestedthat I enlist the assistance of thepathologist at the Naonal Zoological Gardensof South Africa in Pretoria, Dr. EmilyLane. And fortunately Emily did not shy awayfrom such an excing new challenge either,since she knew all about land criers of allsorts, but had unl then had very lile exposureto marine animals. Jointly we set out totry and elucidate what was going on and,together with German colleagues trained inthe very specialized field of marine mammalpathology (Drs. Peter Wohlsein and UrsulaSiebert, both from the VeterinaryUniversity, Hannover,Germany), a collaborave researchproject supported bythe NRF and the DFG (its Germanequivalent) was iniatedin 2010 to invesgate the generalhealth, including thepathological changes we hadobserved, of the dolphins incidentallycaught in the sharknets off KwaZulu‐Natal.Marine mammals in generaland parcularly coastal speciesare increasingly used as indicatorspecies of marine environmentalhealth as they can besennels for human healthwhere humans are using thesame coastal environment.Most of the dolphins caught inthe shark nets are either IndianOcean bolenose dolphins(Tursiops aduncus) or Indo‐Pacific humpback dolphins(Sousa chinensis), both coastal species, andthus potenally prone to a number of anthropogenicimpacts on their health, rangingfrom disturbance due to coastal developmentsto polluon from agricultural run‐offand sewage outlets. However, we know verylile about the general health status of theseanimals‐some baseline studies on the generalbiology of these two species from Kwa‐Zulu‐Natal exist due to previous studies onspecimens from the shark nets, but lile iscurrently known on how the changing marineenvironment affects the lifestyle, populaondynamics, and health of these species.However, increasing evidence emerges elsewherein the world that supports a link betweenhuman environmental disturbanceand emerging infecous diseases of wildlifepopulaons. It is becoming clear that anthropogenicenvironmental changes may promotethe emergence of pathogens throughtransportaon and introducon of infecousagents or hosts to new environments,through the manipulaon of local ecosys‐Morne de Wet (University of Pretoria, Onderstepoort),Ursula Siebert (Veterinary University ofHannover, Germany) and Stephanie Plön (SAIAB/Bayworld) during necropsies at the KwaZulu-NatalSharks Board.

Page 14SANCOR NEWSLETTER #200tems to favour proliferaon or prolongedsurvival of infecous agents, or by facilitangnew host‐pathogen interacons. Theseemerging infecous diseases in turn posethreats to ecosystem biodiversity and humanhealth. Thus the interdisciplinary field ofconservaon medicine, the interface betweenhuman, wildlife and ecosystemhealth, is emerging as an ever more importantfield of research.The preliminary results from the health assessmentobtained by the MSc student onthe project, Dr. Morne de Wet (a qualifiedveterinarian), under the guidance of Dr. PeterThompson from Onderstepoort, indicatethat the changes in the animals first seen in2009 were caused by a parasite, which appearsto have been sweeping through thepopulaons at that me. Nowadays we rarelysee animals with similar signs any more.Exactly what caused this “outbreak” of theparasites and why they were seen in somany animals from both species remainsunclear‐ possibilies range from an alteredimmunity of the dolphins due to environmentalpollutants, over climacally drivenchanges in the food of the dolphins causingchanges in the lifecycle of parasites, to theintroducon of a new parasite due to alteredrates of contact between different species.The results from the invesgaon of thePeruvian pelicans indicated that the animalsdied from a combinaon of malnutrion andparasitosis. A lack of Peruvian anchoveta(Engraulis ringens) (whether due to climaccondions or overfishing is unclear) had leadto the pelicans not finding sufficient food,thus taking fish they usually do not eat andwhich may therefore not provide the requirednutrion. As a result the animals mayhave been in bad condion, enabling theparasites, which are commonly present inwild Pelican populaons, to thrive and thuscause the demise of the birds. However, theresults on the dolphins and porpoises affectedby the die‐off remain contenous, somesciensts being convinced that acousc traumawas the cause.Certainly the case of the Peruvian pelicansillustrates how changes in climate and relatedenvironmental changes go hand in handwith animal and human health as their habitatsoverlap or come into increasing contact.Peruvian authories have warned people notto eat the pelican meat or to get into contactwith the dead birds due to the possibility ofcontracng the parasite.But the story does not end here. Recentfindings by Ian Lipkin and colleagues in theUnited States are alarming: their researchresults recently published by the AmericanSociety for Microbiology indicate that thecause of death of 162 harbour seals in NewEngland, USA, last year may have been froma type of the H3N8 influenza A virus, which isclosely related to a flu strain circulang inNorth American birds since 2002. Since sealshave receptors for both the bird and mammalianflu virus the virus could potenallymutate into a variety more capable of causingdisease in humans.What we do know is that the South Africancoastal dolphins currently show very fewsigns of disease and appear to be generallyin good health within the realm of what isexpected for wild mammal populaons.However, exactly what caused this“outbreak” of the parasites and why theywere seen in so many animals from bothspecies remains unclear. Muldisciplinaryteams are needed to piece together the fullpuzzle: biologists, parasitologists,pathologists, toxicologist etc. As we connuecollaborang with colleagues in Germany itbecomes more evident how much capacitybuilding sll is required in South Africa in thefield of marine diseases and, more specifically,marine conservaon medicine.Team members from the Port Elizabeth Museum/Bayworld, Naonal ZoologicalGardens (Pretoria), Rhodes University and the Veterinary University of Hannover,Germany, during dolphin necropsies at the KwaZulu-Natal Sharks Board.Further reading:T. B. Waltzek, G. Cortés‐Hinojosa, J. F. X.Wellehan Jr. and G. C. Gray (2012) MarineMammal Zoonoses: A Review of DiseaseManifestaons Zoonoses and Public Health:1‐15. published online 14 June 2012 (DOI:10.1111/j.1863‐2378.2012.01492.x)Lipkin and MosconaM.A. Miller, I.A. Gardner, C. Kreuder, D.M.Paradies, K.R. Worcester, D.A. Jessup, E.Dodd, M.D. Harris, J.A. Ames, A.E. Packham,P.A. Conrad (2002) Coastal freshwater runoffis a risk factor for Toxoplasma gondii infec‐on of southern sea oers (Enhydra lutrisnereis) Internaonal Journal for Parasitology32: 997–1006

Page 15SANCOR NEWSLETTER #200BASICally – It works!By Pavs PillayMarine Research Institute – UCTIn 2010 Ma‐Re affiliated researchers gatheredat the Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardensand took on the challenge of addressingaspects of climate change research in aninterdisciplinary manner. Aer much discussion,debate and further deliberaon theBASICS project ‐ Benguela and Agulhas Systemsfor supporng Interdisciplinary Climate‐change Science — was conceptualised anddeveloped. The project was designed tofocus on the development of a system of‘marine data collecon and integraon intomodels’ that aim to project ocean condions(both physical and biological) at the seasonalme scale.The overarching aim of Ma‐Re BASICS is toprovide an umbrella framework that incorporatesdiverse projects on marine socialand ecological systems, spanning mulpledisciplines and extending across differentdepartments and facules. From this a systemof physical and biological indicators arebeing developed, that will be of praccal usein ocean forecasng and fisheries management,with the prospect of beer social andeconomic planning for coastal communies.Hence the BASICS programme is at the nexusof interdisciplinary research, rapid coastaldevelopment and planning and the increasein demand for resources from the ocean.Two years down the road and the BASICSproject has set the landscape for interdisciplinarymarine research at UCT and involvesnot only departments within the naturalsciences but a number of departments withinthe social sciences (Dept. of Social Anthropology,Dept. of Sociology and the Dept. ofHistorical Studies). The core funding for theBASICS programme has been sourcedthrough the University of Cape Town ViceChancellor’s Iniave to the value of R1.8million p.a. for 2 years and then a furtherR1.6 million p.a. for another 2 years, drawingto an end in December 2013.The programme to date (2010 – mid 2012)has funded 46 students (10 postdoctoralstudents, 16 PhD’s and 20 MSc’s). By theend of 2011, six masters dissertaons hadbeen submied and the students have graduated.Several publicaons are in the pipelinewith a host of PhD graduates coming upto compleon of their degrees in 2012/2013.The programme has proven that interdisciplinaryresearch is indeed possible and workablein a structured university set‐up. Newavenues are being explored to fund andsmulate this ongoing interdisciplinary researchpost‐2013. It is imperave that UCTconnues to provide the acve, excing,collaborave research framework needed tosupport marine sciensts working in theBenguela and Agulhas ecosystems with arich and vibrant work environment alignedwith global programmes and iniaves.Ma‐Re Students Network – It’s all about getting involved!By Hayley Evers-King, Morgan Brandand Emily McGregorMarine Research Institute – UCTThe Marine Research (MA‐RE) instute involvesa large number of postgraduate studentsconducng interdisciplinary marineresearch across departments. The MA‐REstudents commiee & network has beenformed to help make the most of this diversegroup by fostering collaboraon, creang amore unified student body and raising theprofile of our students on the internaonalstage.The commiee has set up a Facebook group(“MA‐RE UCT Students”) and a twier feed(“@MARE_UCT”) and will be hosng alaunch in mid‐September. Later in the yearwe have plans to organize themac workshopsand other acvies dependent onstudent requests. Students and academicsinvolved in marine science across disciplinesare encouraged to find us on Facebook andfollow us on Twier to keep up to date withthe latest student news and take part inlively discussions.Please contact us through facebook/twieror via ma‐re@uct.ac.za if you would like tojoin our student network – you do not needto be a UCT student/academic to join, shareand contribute to the network!Applications now open!This Masters degree is offered bythe Marine Research Instute at theUniversity of Cape Town. The programme,consisng of courseworkand dissertaon, provides studentsand professional researchers with amul‐disciplinary and integratedoverview of marine science in Africa.Closing dates forSouth African applicants:30 September 2012More informaon available here

Page 16SANCOR NEWSLETTER #200A different kind of Carnival ‐ Rio +20 dialogues: Ocean themeBy John FieldInvited to representMarine Research Institute – UCTThe 3rd World Summit on Sustainable developmentwas held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil inJune 2012 and named “Rio +20”, coming 20years from the first summit and ten yearsaer the Johannesburg summit in 2002. Anew feature of Rio +20 was the “Rio +20dialogues” arranged jointly by the Braziliangovernment and the UN Development Programme(UNDP) to publicise the event. Thedialogues were arranged in 10 themes, oneof which was Oceans; others including water,poverty, forestry, agriculture, …etc. Academicfacilitators (1 Brazilian, 1 from theNorth and 1 from the South) were appointedfor each theme, our job being to invite interestedcolleagues to contribute ideas, sugges‐ons and eventually, recommendaons forsustainable development in relaon to ourtheme.The Oceans facilitators came up with 10recommendaons, which were adversedon the web along with those of the other 9themes and the public was invited to vote onthem over a two‐week period. The Oceansrecommendaons were, (in order of popularityof the invited group):Launch a global agreement to save highseas marine biodiversityDevelop a global network of interna‐onal marine protected areas.Expand and implement internaonalinstuonal arrangements to protectthe marine environment from landbasedacvies.Promote the creaon of Marine ProtectedAreas designed and co‐managedby arsanal fishers as a suitable tool toensure marine governance and thesustainability of fisheries resourcesworldwideFishery management should be ecosystem‐based,making allowance for theneeds of all components of the ecosystem,including predators. Fishery management procedures shouldbe agreed among stakeholders wheneverpossible, with managementmeasures agreed in advance underrealisc scenarios of future ecologicaland fishery condions for several years. Create global ocean governance mechanismsto preserve biodiversity and genecresources in a scenario of growingnaonalizaon of the marine environment. Avoid ocean polluon by plascsthrough educaon and communitycollaboraon. Monitor and promote internaonalcoordinated research on ocean acidificaonand its effects on marine life andecosystems. As far as possible, fish captured in thewild should be used for human consumpon,with unmarketable by‐catchused for fishmeal.The first round of vong by the public choseNo. 8 as the most popular recommendaonso it automacally went forward to the summitmeeng of the heads of state. Next, in aone‐hour session, the facilitators explainedthe remaining recommendaons to thetheme panel, chosen by the Brazilian governmentin consultaon with UNDP. This panelof ten (very much a decimal system!) puttheir individual views to an audience ofsome 2,000 people at the 3‐day dialoguesmeeng at the new RioCentro convenoncentre on the outskirts of Rio de Janeiro. Thepanel included a son and grandson ofJacques Cousteau, and Sylvia Earle, and alsoother well‐known public figures. Aer ten“short” presentaons each urging the assembledcrowd to vote for their favouriterecommendaon, the assembly voted electronicallyfor the next recommendaon to goforward: Recommendaon 1 in the listabove. Finally the panel had the liberty offormulang their own recommendaon asthe third to go forward, so the three recommendaonsthat Sylvia Earle presented tothe Heads of State were: Avoid ocean polluon by plascsthrough educaon and communitycollaboraon. Launch a global agreement to save highseas marine biodiversity. Take immediate acon to develop aglobal network of internaonal marineprotected areas, while fostering ecosystembased fisheries management, withspecial consideraon for small‐scalefishing interests.However, in parallel to the Dialoguesmeengs described above, the governmentalministries were negoang the text ofthe document to be signed by the Heads ofState, a process we that we heard wasfraught with oen acrimonious argument asthe original dras were watered down inaempts to reach consensus. Thus by theme the Heads of State assembled in thedays following the dialogues, the text hadalready been negoated and there was lileprospect of the three minutes allocated forpresentaon by each theme rapporteurmaking any difference to the outcome.In summary, the Rio Dialogues were an interesngexperiment that succeeded in involvingmany more people than would otherwisehave been there, and publicised the eventand issues, but made no difference to a disappoinngoutcome for the summit. Thiswas to be expected, given the serious economicand polical issues being confronted,and symbolised by the absence of the Headsof State of the USA, UK and Germany. Asusually happens in polics, short term issues(such as re‐elecon) take precedence overthe serious long term issues facing our planet.

Page 17SANCOR NEWSLETTER #200When talking science alone does not get the message across!By Pavs PillayMarine Research Institute – UCT“Knowledge alone does not yield appropriateacon.” – Naomi Oreskes (2010)In June 2005 Steve Jobs, Apple Macintoshfounder, encouraged Stanford graduates to“Stay Hungry. Stay Foolish” – nowhere canthe hunger for knowledge be more clearlyseen than in a young learners eyes whenthey gaze upon a marine touch tank or shudderin ancipaon and excitement whenasked to touch a starfish or squeak withdisbelief when you show them a picture of aSpanish dancer nudibranch or an animaonof an ocean glider! Inially young learnershave an innate respect for the planet and itsresources but then they grow up!By the me learners get to high school,many have lost the thirst for knowledgealong with a decline in the understanding ofscience. Even more startling there seems tobe a loss of concern in the environmentshealth and a dislocaon from being part ofthe earth’s ecosystem. Along with this disassociaonfrom and disinterest in the naturalenvironment, many live in a world of instantmessaging, Facebook, Twier, bbming andreality television, a combinaon of instantsasfacon and short‐term success. So howdo we keep learners hungry for science andbased on the current environmental criseswe are facing, how do we get them to thinkand act responsibly?One way through which Ma‐Re is trying toget learners submerged into marine scienceand related environmental aspects isthrough learner parcipaon in the teachingprocess and in integrang current socialmedia networks (Facebook, Twier etc.) intofun and engaging acvies. Most effecveundertakings have involved geng leanerscompletelyimmersedin thetask.Oneacvitythat hasparcularlyworkedwell hasbeenthedevelopment of a murder mystery gamearound a marine theme.Picture this – a fishing vessel that is notoriouslyknown for illegal fishing comes intoport with a dead observer on board. Analysesof the evidence and the blood found atthe crime scene reveals that the blood wasnot only the vicm’s blood but also theblood of another person (possible the killer).The game comprises of developing charactersketches of the observer, the fishing crew,the fishing company, and various other nefariouscharacters. The more creave youare the beer the game! Get a cast of postgraduatestudents together to act out thecharacters. Then set the scene for the learnersand get them to solve the murderthrough interviews and observaon of astaged crime scene. Go even as far as sengup a fake Facebook page or Twier accountwith news of the death, the illegal fishingand using your mobile phone send updates,giving clues and misinformaon during thegame. Give the learners access the site byprojecng the Facebook page via a dataprojector on a wall in the room. CSI – MarineScience Style!The game is highly interacve with the learnersconducng interviews with charactersand false pieces of informaon and evidencebeing fed to them. All the while learnerslisten and learn, by mere conversaon, readingthe Facebook page, interacon andsomemes interrogaon, about DNA, DNAprofiling, the DNA database, marine observers,sustainable marine resource, SASSI, thefishing industry etc. Aer two, somemesthree fun‐filled hours, learners using justobservaonal and circumstanal evidencepredict who the killer(s) are. You then revealthe killer(s) using DNA sequencing along withother more conclusive observaonal evidence– something that you would havesetup at when developing the game. Whenleaving the classroom, amidst much chaerand excitement, learners say that the sessionhas made them eager to learn more aboutsolving a murder using DNA, illegal fishing,the power of observaon and wanng to beforensic sciensts, marine biologists andsome such things, all the while sharing talesand anecdotes of their interviews with thecharacters in the most animated ways.Clearly then using such methods and mechanismsof outreach Ma‐Re hopes to keepyoung learners staying “hungry” forknowledge and a lile less “foolish”.

Page 18SANCOR NEWSLETTER #200Sustainable Oceans & Coasts – let’s do it togetherThe Marine and Coastal Educators Network(MCEN) hosted its 12 th annual naonal conferencein Durban during 24‐27 June 2012.MCEN is a SANCOR co‐ordinang groupwhich facilitates collaboraon between educatorsand assists marine educators in theiracvies. The event was successfully hostedby uShaka Marine World and efficiently coordinatedby Heidi Kilian and Jone Porter.The conference was themed: “SustainableOceans & Coasts – let’s do it together” andwas aended by 33 parcipants from Kwa‐Zulu‐Natal, Northern, Eastern, Southern andWestern Cape, as well as Gauteng. Organisa‐ons represented were Two Oceans Aquarium,Sea World, SAMREC, WESSA, SANParks,SANCCOB, NZG, Namakwa District Municipality,Ndlambe Municipality and other conservaonauthories. The conferencearacted both new and regular members ‐ aposive indicaon of its vital role to supporngeducators.Presentaons were given by researchers andeducators along the daily themes: i) Sustainability& Characteriscs of a Coast, ii) Coastsand Ecosystems; iii) Oceans; iv) Exploraonand v) Into the future.These are just a fewhighlights from thecomprehensiveprogramme:Sean Fenessypresented onprawn bycatch reduc‐on and Bruce Mannexplained the methodsused by fisheriessciensts to monitorfish populaons. Thiswas followed by ahands‐on exercise tohighlight the choicesavailable to seafoodconsumers using theSASSI guidelines.Arno Munro (DAFF) presented on SA’s fishing sector and the sustainableuse of marine resources. The audience was divided intogroups to demonstrate lesson acvies relevant to the curriculumfor learners at different grade levels .With intense animaonand skill, Mpho Lephailla used storytelling toconvey the unique physiology of variousmarine organisms. Arno Munro’s presenta‐ons and acvies illustrated the variousfishing methods and the sustainability ofeach method. Camilla Floros, Phanor Montoya‐Mayaand Jusn Hart provided insightinto coral reef studies. Judy Mann sharedresults on studies which invesgated theimpact of environmental awareness campaignson changing individual behaviour.Field trips included aguided excursion byJone Porter to the mangrovesin the Bay HeadNatural Heritage site, ashark dissecon at Kwa‐Zulu‐Natal Sharks Boardand a tour of the port ofDurban which is Africa'sbusiest general cargoport and container terminal.Lessons and acvieswereKhonzani Lembeni’s (Two Oceans Aquarium) Fish-Mathemacs Lessonand acvies on sustainable fishing were designed to developliteracy and numeracy skills. Khonzani received the Best PresenterAward for 2012.demonstratedthat were aimed at thevarious grades, with anaim to complement the syllabus content andto cover the praccal aspects of the theorytaught in the classroom. The informave andengaging acvies were designed with thedual purpose of educang learners on themarine and coastal environment while at thesame me building numeracy and literacyskills. The regions shared presentaons ontheir lessons, acvies and outreach programmes,allowing educators to exchangeideas, materials and resources.As Judy Mann concluded in the final talk ofthe conference— it is MCEN’s vibrant andinfecous passion for the coast and theirdedicaon to environmental educaon thatwill make a posive impact on the learnersas well as the public in general.ACRONYMSDAFFNZGSAAMBRSAMRECSANCCOBSANParksSASSIWESSADepartment of Agriculture, Forestryand FisheriesNational Zoological GardensSouth African Association for MarineBiological ResearchSouth African Marine Rehabilitationand Education CentreSouthern African Foundation for theConservation of Coastal BirdsSouth African National Parks BoardSouthern African Sustainable SeafoodInitiativeWildlife and Environment Society ofSouth Africa

Page 19SANCOR NEWSLETTER #200SANCCOB and friends celebrate Mandela Day with a beach clean‐upBirthday greetings from the SouthBy Francois LouwSouthern African Foundation for the Conservationof Coastal Birds (SANCCOB)Mandela Day is celebrated every year onNelson Mandela’s birthday – 18 July ‐ tohonour his legacy and his values, throughvolunteering and community service. Withthe onus on caring for our seabirds and marineenvironment, SANCCOB hosted a beachclean‐up at Lagoon Beach to clean the seasidearea by collecng lier and rubble for67 minutes.The event was opened by Margaret Roestorf(SANCCOB’s Acng CEO) and Nicky Stander(SANCCOB’s Rehabilitaon Manager) whoemphasised to the 100+ crowd why it is soimportant to keep our seaside areas cleanfor the sake of preserving our marine life forfuture generaons. Bole‐caps, fishing lines,rope and plasc bags found on beaches aresome of the many potenally fatal items toseabirds. As a working seabird hospital,SANCCOB regularly sees the harm that suchseemingly insignificant everyday items cancause to African penguins, gulls, cormorantsand many of the other seabirds that we admit365 days a year.The enthusiasc crowd included membersfrom the Blouberg Beach Cleanup team,Naonal finalists from Miss Earth South Africain associaon with Console, Cape TownSurfers Webazine, Junior Juncon pre‐schooland the ER24 Milnerton Crew. MilnertonMunicipality was kind to assist with providinglier bags for the day and was very helpfulwith the collecon of the countless bagswith the conclusion of the event.SANCCOB is a leading marine‐orientated non‐profit organizaon which has treated morethan 90 000 oiled, ill, injured or abandonedAfrican penguins and other threatened seabirdssince being established in 1968. Independentresearch confirms that the wildAfrican populaon is 19% higher directly dueto SANCCOB’s efforts.By Leonora Finca, Samantha Ockhuis,Sandra Setati and Dayne WilliamsInterns from the Department of Environmental AffairsIt was on the 18th July 2012, onboard the SAAgulhas II on its maiden cruise to the SouthernOcean, that the ship had sailed throughthe “Roaring Fores” and traversing the“Furious Fiies”, the latude was 57°Southalong the Greenwich Meridian longitudinalline that an idea was born.What seemed like an innocent suggesonwas transformed to serious acon. Armedwith spades, hands, buckets and anythingthat could scoop, a few people began digginginto the thick snow that accumulated overtwo days on the “a” deck. Working withenergy and synchronizaon, crew membersturned the potenal slip hazard into a meaningfulpile with a special message.The message was directed to former SApresident, Nobel‐Laureate and global legendin our life me, Dr Nelson Rolihlala Mandela.Those aending the event were treated to a meet-and-greet with SANCCOB’s veryown Rockhopper penguin, Rocky, who was there to thank everyone for giving their67-minutes with SANCCOB on the special day.Above: All hands on deck as crew membersarrange a birthday tribute forMadiba from the Southern Oceans onMandela Day. Photos by Darrel Andersand Mutshutshu Tsanwani.MANDELA DAY CELEBRATIONS

Page 20SANCOR NEWSLETTER #200A fond farewell to Larry Hutchings, recently retired from DEACompiled by Jenny Huggett 1 , with contributions from Hans Verheye 1 , Rob Crawford 1 , Lieze Swart 1 , Carlvan der Lingen 2 , John Field 3 , Coleen Moloney 3 , Astrid Jarre 3 , Colin Attwood 3 , Anthony Richardson 4 ,EvaPlaganyi 4 , Su Painting 5 and Vere Shannon.1Department of Environmental Affairs; 2 Department of Agriculture Forestry and Fisheries; 3 Ma-Re andZoology Department, University of Cape Town; 4 Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial ResearchOrganisation, Australia; 5 Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science , UKLarry Hutchings rered from Oceans andCoasts, Department of EnvironmentalAffairs, at the end of June 2012, following a45‐year career in biological oceanography.Larry has spent most of his career unravelingthe dynamics and funconing of the Benguelaupwelling ecosystem. He specialises inzooplankton, but has a broad knowledge ofall components of the Benguela as well asother eastern boundary upwelling ecosystems,including the basic physical mechanismsthat control plankton, key species suchas small pelagic fish, and top predators.While many of his colleagues are mired indiscipline‐specific views, Larry's deep understandingof the physics and biology of allecosystem components make his insightsunique. His ability to think “out of the box”and his distrust of convenonally‐acceptedexplanaons helped us to challenge paradigmson how things work and also howthings should be done.Larry studied at the University of Cape Town,achieving his BSc in 1967 with majors in bothZoology and Chemistry. Soon aer joiningthe Department, he applied to study Honoursat UCT, but without asking permissionfrom the Director, who curtly told him “wedon’t want your sort here” and thereaerpointedly ignored him in the corridors (Larrysays he has had prey much the same rela‐onship with many of his bosses since!).Larry persevered, however, and gained hisPhD in 1979 for his thesis entled:“Zooplankton of the Cape Peninsulaupwelling region”, supervised by Prof JohnField at UCT. His PhD occupied an enrevolume of the Sea Fisheries InvesgaonalReport series.Larry headed the Plankton Group at the oldAquarium in Sea Point from 1976 to 1992,where he was the “Oceanographer with aview of the ocean”, and tolerated the transformaonof the “Sea Point School of Apathy– Why bother?” into the “Sea Point School ofEnthusiasm – We bother!” He fondly remembersthese years as a golden era withinhis career. Vere Shannon, ex‐Director of theSea Fisheries Research Instute (SFRI), as itwas called then, recalls: “In the report of anextensive official work study of Sea Fisheriesin the 1970s the inspector from Pretoriareported about the Plankton Secon that ‘…a carnival atude prevails there’. He wasreferring to laissez-faire way in which Larryand the “plankton bums” funconed. So nowyou know what the essenalingredient is forsmulang innovaveresearch! That is why itwas successful and whatis more, they had fun atthe carnival.” Furtherinsights from the “goodold days” are provided ina separate arcle byPeter Shelton. In 1992,Larry moved reluctantlyto the Foreshore headquartersof the SFRI,later to become Marineand Coastal Management,to co‐lead the “Whole Systems” groupwith Rob Crawford, which later evolved intothe Ecosystem Ulisaon and Conservaongroup.Larry lost his lower right leg in a motorcycleaccident in 1983, but this never stopped himfrom pursuing his favourite acvies –“armed” with a series of prosthecs, includinga flipper foot, Larry has sll managed tobodysurf, snorkel, parcipate in annual“Beach Olympics” between SFRI and UCT,climb the steep Cape Point mountainside toand from his favourite fishing spot, and navigatethe decks and stairwells of various researchvessels. Naturally his arficial legbecame a useful tool for entertaining colleaguesand terrorizing hapless waitrons, asripping it off and waving it in the air heLarry takes charge during a droguestudy cruise in 1995Larry sampling “adult ichthyoplankton” on the FRS Africanawould shout “this meal cost an arm and aleg!”Larry played a pivotal role in the developmentof the inial Benguela Ecology Programme(BEP) in the 1980s, which fosteredcooperaon between UCT, CSIR and SFRI.This was a pivotal moment in helping SouthAfrica move forward in interdisciplinary andinter‐instuonal marine research, was importantin raising Sea Fisheries' scienficprofile, and was seminal in the developmentof a generaon of young research scienstswho will connue to contribute to marineresearch in South Africa and beyond. Larrylater played key roles in BENEFIT, the researchcomponent of the Benguela CurrentLarge Marine Ecosystem Programme(BCLME) and the Benguela Current Commis‐

Page 21SANCOR NEWSLETTER #200sion (BCC), which broadened regional scien‐fic cooperaon between South Africa, Namibiaand Angola. He aained the highestscienfic level within DEA, as Chief SpecialistScienst, and served on many scienfic advisorypanels and working groups within SFRI/MCM/DEA, as well as regionally and interna‐onally (e.g. the startup of GLOBEC, andGOOS).Larry oen has great foresight, and hischampioning of environmental monitoringme‐series is typical. As me‐series aroundthe world were being shut down in the1980s, South Africa was increasing theirs,parally in response to his oen‐arculatedbelief that the environment controlled fisheries.Besides iniang roune environmentaland plankton monitoring on the bi‐annualpelagic fish stock assessment cruises, he wasinstrumental in iniang regular monitoringof fish eggs and larvae in the Benguela jetcurrent off the Cape Peninsula, and he establishedthe monthly St Helena Bay monitoringline in 2000. Larry loves going to sea andparcipated in all but one of the Novemberpelagic spawner biomass surveys between1988 and 2011, collecng zooplankton andconducng copepod producon experimentsto assess the feeding condions for pelagicfish, as well as assessing stomach contents ofpelagic fish to analyse their diet (besidespacking many for bait!). He also spearheadedlong‐term line‐fish monitoring off DeHoop, and argued strongly for the incorpora‐on of environmental knowledge in fishstock‐management procedures.With more than 80 scienfic publicaons tohis credit (and sll counng!), Larry has ahigh profile internaonally, and has givenseveral keynote addresses. Larry is one ofSouth Africa's most well known and respectedmarine sciensts, and was awarded thepresgious Gilchrist Medal in 1993 for hiscontribuon to marine science. He wasmade an Honorary Professor at UCT in 2009.Larry has enthused and inspired many othersover the years with his passion for planktonand his “boom‐up” perspecve of the ecosystem,from lecturing undergraduates atUCT and Cape Peninsula University of Technology(CPUT), training students at sea, toofficially mentoring 10 MSc and 11 PhD students,with one ongoing. Out at sea, it isimpossible not to convert to a plankton fa‐nac as Larry reveals the fascinang diversityto be seen under the microscope, and thereare many past students that remain gratefulfor the colourful and thorough groundingthat Larry provided as a teacher. He has anability to generate and passionately deliver aplethora of hypotheses about what was happeningin a system and why, oen withouttaking a breath. This le some of his collaboratorsbewildered and bemused by the volumeand scope of alternave ideas – andindeed, many wishing they had broughtalong a tape recorder! For those collaboratorswho would winnow this surfeit of ideasinto those most relevant and testable, therewere – and are ‐ rich rewards. Oen one'sbest insights and subsequent science comefrom listening to Larry and carefully dissecnghis ideas aerwards.In a me when focus, specialisaon anddomain‐specific knowledge was the norm,his broad knowledge connued to urge studentsand colleagues to see the bigger picture.Larry has always highlighted the importanceof field work, for anyone involvedwith the ocean to “see what’s really outthere”. His never‐ending curiosity to understand“what makes the oceans ck”, and hisexceponal talent as a builder of intellectualbridges is held in high esteem in current‐dayinterdisciplinary research. Larry’s everyouthfulenthusiasm and willingness to shareideas is an excellent model for young researcherswanng to make a substanalcontribuon to the sciences.Larry will mainly be remembered for hispassion for fishing, his deep love and understandingof the ocean and all its components,his warm and infecous enthusiasm,and the great wisdom that “poured forthfrom his thumbs”. Whilst his rerement iswell‐earned and richly deserved, it will leavea huge hole at DEA, and his insight, livelymind and irreverent no‐nonsense commentswill be sorely missed by the marine scienficcommunity. He has been invited to stay onas an Honorary Professor in the Marine Research(Ma‐Re) Instute at UCT where hisintuive 3‐dimensional understanding of thephysics, chemistry and ecology of the oceancan be put to good use challenging the modellersand theorecians. We hope to see youaround, Larry!A Tribute to Larryby Peter SheltonDepartment of Fisheries and Oceans, CanadaLarry's passion for science is infecous. Inthe 1970s and early 1980s the Plankton Sec‐on in Sea Point was at the cung edgeworld‐wide in the study of plankton dynamics‐ the study of plankton blooms and successionalong upwelling plumes. The SCUMand SCREW programs were legendary, aswere the strategic fishing staons on top ofthe more producve reefs to carry out Larry'sfavorite research program – monitoringof handline CPUE! When I joined the PelagicSecon staoned in the Sea Point buildingnext to Larry’s lab to work with Garth Newman,Rob Crawford and Oliver Centurier‐Harris on stock assessment in 1976, Larrysoon sought me out and made sure I didn'tend up being solely a desk scienst studyingpaper fish. My first sea trip was on a hakesurvey sharing the hospital with Larry on thetop deck of the old Africana with Andy Payneas scienst‐in‐charge. It was Larry who suggestedthe topic for my MSc ‐ to track apatch of newly spawned anchovy eggs usinga drogue, sampling repeatedly for 4 dayswith a flight of 8 Miller nets, over which mewe slept for a total of less than 6 hrs. At theend of it I had all the data needed to substanatethe role of the Nils Bang jet currentin transporng anchovy eggs and early stagelarvae from the spawning ground to thenursery ground. Larry's intuion regardingthe funconing of the Benguela ecosystem isastounding and many of us have benefitedfrom his generosity in sharing his ideas andencouraging collaborave research to explorethe hypotheses he generated. Togetherwith John Field and Vere Shannon, he wasinstrumental in breaking down the age‐olddivide between Sea Fisheries and UCT byiniang the Benguela Ecology Program andthe weekly on‐campus science seminars. Isll remember the regular face‐offs betweenThe Devil's Advocate who claimed that all weneeded were three parameters to explainthe world, and Larry who claimed we neededto actually understand how the ecosystemfuncons! With the demise of SFRI and themorphing into a succession of bureaucracies,there are probably few of Larry’s bosses whohave any idea who he is and with what highesteem he is held in the internaonal scien‐fic community.

Page 22SANCOR NEWSLETTER #200Prof Rudy van der Elst retiresBy Larry OellermannDirector of Oceanographic Research InstituteAs a student of ichthyology & fisheries sciencein the 1980’s, I had the privilege tomeet, be terrified by (anyone rememberhonours seminars?) and mentored by someof the great characters of marine science inSouth Africa. One of the characters I nevergot to meet as a student, but whom I havebeen privileged to work with in his last yearbefore rerement, is Prof Rudy van der Elst,maverick marine scienst from KwaZulu‐Natal. I first came across Rudy’s name when Iwas given two of his newly minted “A Guideto the Common Sea Fishes of Southern Africa”books for my 21st birthday. The bookwas an instant hit with us fish students; lesstechnical and much easier to carry aroundthat “Smith’s Sea Fishes”!Rudy was born in the Netherlands, but becamea South African cizen in 1959. Aproduct of King Edwards School and WitsUniversity in Johannesburg, Rudy moveddown to Durban in 1969 to join the OceanographicResearch Instute (ORI) as a scien‐st. His early research focussed on KZN marineconservaon, including arsanal andrecreaonal linefish, and the estuarine fishesof St Lucia. He also worked part me on hisMSc thesis, and graduated from the Universityof Natal in 1975. In his thesis, Rudy invesgatedthe declining catches of the shad(aka elf, Pomatomus saltatrix), a popularlinefish in KZN. His subsequent recommendaonto the authories to introduce strictfishing controls for the species resulted inwidespread dissent amongst fishermen. Anaonal, week‐long commission of inquiryresulted in a 450‐page document, in whichthe panel ofexperts vindicatedRudy’sresearch. Themanagementplan was enforcedand inme the fisheryrecovered,providing theimpetus neededfor more widespread fisheries managementacons in South Africa. Never afraid tostand up for his science, Rudy courted controversyagain a short me later, when theresults of his study on the ecosystem effectsof the KZN shark net programme on largepredatory sharks was made public. Nevertheless,the research ulmately contributedto reducons in neng and lower mortality.In 1985 Rudy was promoted to senior scien‐st, responsible for ORI’s fisheries research.During this stage of his career he developedlarge informaon gathering programmes,sll on‐going today, which represent some ofthe longest connuous marine data sets inKZN. For example, the Naonal Marine LinefishSystem (NMLS), developed in collabora‐on with Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife and thethen Department of Environmental Affairs &Tourism’s Marine and Coastal ManagementDirectorate (MCM), documents the acviesand catch details of up to 1 million fishermenoungs in KZN annually, providing a longtermcomprehensive database on line fishingtrends in the province. Another example isthe naonwide linefish tagging project,which was iniated with private donor support.The project involves voluntary taggingand release of angled fish by fishermen andis one of the largest such programmes anywhere.More than 4 800 fishermen are involved,having tagged more than 250 000fish from at least 120 species. Now, nearly30 years later, the project is sll vibrant andthe data generated have been widely used inresearch and fisheries management.Rudy became the head of ORI in 1990. Besidesleading the ORI research team whilstconnuing with his various research interests,he also began to play a growing advisoryrole in marine and coastal resource managementin South Africa. He was an acveparcipant and contributor to the developmentof South Africa’s naonal fisheriespolicy (subsequently promulgated as theMarine Living Resources Act). He was alsoappointed to the naonal Coastal Zone PolicyCommiee, which was charged with developinga naonal coastal zone policy(White Paper) for South Africa, recentlypromulgated as the Integrated Coastal ZoneManagement Act (ICZMA).During the last decade, Rudy’s contribuonshave not just been limited to KZN and SouthAfrica. He has spearheaded ORI’s growinginvolvement in the marine and coastal resourcesaffairs of the Western Indian Ocean

Page 23SANCOR NEWSLETTER #200(WIO) naons. The instute has carried outresearch, consultancies or training programmesin all of the east coast states ofAfrica, from Mozambique to Eritrea, as wellas the WIO islands. WIOFISH, a databasechampioned by Rudy and managed by ORI, isone of the most comprehensive arsanaland small scale fisheries informaon systemsavailable in the region. Rudy also played akey role in the development of the GEF andWorld Bank’s South West Indian Ocean FisheriesProject (SWIOFP), a WIO regional fisheriesdevelopment and conservaon inia‐ve involving nine countries of the East Africanregion.Along with his other acvies, Rudy hasfound the me to produce a respectablebody of academic work, consisng of morethan 950 publicaons, including books, scienficpublicaons & reports, popular arclesas well as conference proceedings. Hehas taught and mentored a number of postgraduate students as an associate professorat the University of KwaZulu‐Natal and as aguest professor at the University of Brussels.A past Chair of the SANCOR Forum, Rudy hasdedicated me to a number of other importantbodies, such as the Forum of Academic& Research Instutes in the WesternIndian Ocean Region (FARI; current Chair),West Indian Marine Science Associaon(WIOMSA; Trustee board member); KZNShark Board (Board member) and the AfricanJournal of Marine Science (Editorial panelmember) to name the most recent of a longlist.Aer more than 42 years of dedicated serviceto ORI and marine science both locallyand regionally, rerement finally caught upwith Rudy in 2012. During his farewell partyheld in SAAMBR’s Sea World Aquarium andcelebrated with a collecon of his peers,friends and colleagues from across the years,Rudy was presented with the MegladonAward by the Chairman of SAAMBR, Mr ChrisRudham, and Mr Barry Rebeck, the Associa‐on’s President. The Megladon Award consistsof a framed cast of a fossilized toothfrom a Megladon shark, possibly the largestfish ever to exist, which swam the oceanssome 28 – 1.5 million years ago. The awardis the Associaon’s highest accolade, and hasonly been bestowed on three other recipientsin SAAMBR’s 60 year history; Prof DesmondClarence, Principal and Vice‐Chancellor of the University of Natal andpast head of SAAMBR’s Scienfic AssessmentCommiee; Mr Roy Phillips, past Presidentof the Associaon; and Prof Tony de Freitas,past CEO of SAAMBR.Although Rudy plans to rere to Mossel Bayby the end of 2012, he shall connue to playan acve role at ORI as a research associate.In fact, now that he no longer has the administravedues of ORI to e him down, Rudyseems to be more involved in research workand consultancies than ever, with requestsfor assistance with projects in the WIO regionconstantly flooding in, from naonalgovernments, regional associaons and internaonalbodies such as the Food & AgriculturalAdministraon (FAO) and the WorldBank.The passion that Rudy has brought to marinescience is surpassed only by his passion forORI, the organisaon he has worked relesslyfor and helped shape over the last 42years. The path for a not‐for‐profit, nongovernmentalorganisaon bent on carryingout relevant, high quality research is not aneasy one. The remarkably rude health of theinstute that Rudy recently handed over tome is a testament to his vision, entrepreneurship,dedicaon and drive. On behalf ofthose of us le behind to carry on ORI’s goodwork, Thank You Rudy!Issued by the South African Network for Coastal and Oceanic Research (SANCOR)Private Bag X2, Roggebaai, 8012Enquiries: EDITOR: Carmen VisserTel: +27-21-402 3536E-mail: sancor@daff.gov.zaWebsite: http://sancor.nrf.ac.zaDisclaimer: SANCOR's main function is to disseminate information. SANCOR encourages robust, indeed provocativedebate about any matters relevant to the marine science community. The views and opinions expressed in all communicationfrom SANCOR are not a reflection of the views of SANCOR or the SANCOR Secretariat.SANCOR's activities are made possible through financial contributions from the Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries(DAFF), the Department of Environmental Affairs (DEA) and the National Research Foundation (NRF).