FRIENDS OF CAWTHRON I DEC 2013

News from the Thomas Cawthron Trust

FROM ALL OF US

AT CAWTHRON

WE WISH YOU A

MERRY CHRISTMAS

&

A HAPPY NEW

YEAR

THANK YOU

FOR YOUR

SUPPORT

THROUGHOUT

2013!

Weddell seal relaxing in Antarctica. Photo: Emma Newcombe

Nelson College for Girls science teacher

Sarah Johns is ready to set off for Antarctica

under The Royal Society Endeavour Teacher

Fellowship Scheme. Cawthron Institute will be

her host institute and when she gets back

from Antarctica she will be working at

Cawthron with Dr Jonathan Banks until the

end of June 2014.

The concept behind the scheme is for

teachers to gain new and up-to-date

knowledge which will enhance teaching and

learning and to give teachers the opportunity of a life time to engage in an

authentic scientific study in one of the world’s most unique environments,

Antarctica.

Sarah will be researching how the pressures of climate change and

commercial fishing are affecting the diets of three key predators in the

Ross Sea. Studying the diets of killer whales, Weddell seals and Adelie

penguins will provide understanding of the critical food resources

necessary for these animals. It will provide reference points for future

changes and allow for responsible management of the Ross Sea.

She will be in Antarctica for 4 weeks working alongside leading scientists,

learning sampling techniques and collecting faecal matter to bring back to

Cawthron where she will be completing DNA analysis in the new labs of

the Envirotech wing.

Sarah is hoping for this to be a great opportunity for outreach and for

students and families to be involved. She also hopes to inspire young

women interested in science, showing how she is able to be part of this

exciting research whilst having a young family, she is really living out her

dream. If you are interested in following her experience visit her

Facebook page: Biology in Antarctica with Mrs Johns.

Nelson College for Girls

Science teacher Sarah Johns

CAWTHRON SUPPORTS TEACHER’S SCIENTIFIC

STUDY IN ANTARCTICA

RADIO SHOW

Tune in to Cawthron-Behind the

Scenes

Our radio show airs fortnightly on

Fresh FM (Mondays at 5.40pm

and Wednesdays at 11.40am).

If you missed a show, they are

now available on iTunes, just

search for Fresh FM in the

iTunes library. You can also

download them directly from the

Fresh FM website or our Friends

of Cawthron Facebook page.

Upcoming show

30th Dec & 1st Jan

Listen to Kati Dohering,

freshwater Ecologist, talking

about an exciting new online

project on water quality aimed for

the public and scientists, to be

launched in March.

FROM ICEBREAKERS TO SUNNY SANDS

December 2013 | News from the Thomas Cawthron Trust

What is your background?

I studied science as an undergraduate in Auckland, and did my Honours in Victoria. I really wanted to go overseas, so did a PhD in Canada. It was really different over there, the ecosystems I was researching were nothing like what I had worked on in NZ. Our field trips would be on icebreakers and I got to go on a submarine in the fiords. I came back to NZ to do a postdoc and got a job as a research scientist at NIWA, I then went back to Canada for 10 years.

What do you and your team at Cawthron work on?

The Marine Ecology Team has a wide range of expertise and interests, there are 7 scientists on the team and we have a variety of consulting and research projects. We do a lot of estuarine and coastal monitoring for councils, industry, and resource consent applications. We also carry out research projects funded by Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment, for example at the moment we are working on valuing marine and coastal ecosystem services. Within the research program we are developing frameworks that make the ‘value’ of ecosystems more evident and therefore can inform marine spatial planning and policy options.

What do you enjoy most about working at Cawthron?

I love the sense of community here. People collaborate together, it isn’t competitive. It is a nice environment, people are flexible and understanding. I am a mother of three and in North America it can be a real struggle for scientists to maintain a good work life balance.

When you’re not at Cawthron what do you like to do?

As a family we love sailing but we don’t have a sail boat at the moment as

we couldn’t bring it over from Canada, over there we sailed between

icebergs. We also ski; we are swapping from cross country skiing in

Canada to downhill skiing here. We also all enjoy hiking and camping.

Everyone in my family except my husband plays an instrument, so it’s

pretty noisy at our house.

Cawthron Scientist Dr Joanne Ellis has recently taken on the role

of managing the Marine Ecology group. Joanne tells us about her

life as a scientist.

Joanne Ellis sailing in Newfoundland

Student’s Visits

In November students from

Mapua School and Waimea

College got a good taste for real

science when they came to

Cawthron on their careers day.

They got involved in a

biosecurity project, measuring

the marine snail Cookia sulcata.

They then followed some

scientists out to the marina to

learn all about invasive species.

After they spent some time in

the Coastal and Freshwater

taxonomy lab where they got to

look under the microscope and

dissect trout, followed by a visit

to the microbiology and

pathology lab.

Charlie Norton

After being selected to attend

the prestigious London

International Youth Forum

including a to visit the Hadron

Collider in Switzerland, Nelson

College student Charlie Norton

approached Cawthron Trust for

funding, thanks to the generous

sponsorship he was able attend.

After his fantastic experience we

interviewed him for our

Cawthron—Behind The Scenes

radio show on Fresh FM, if you

missed it you can download it

the show at www.freshfm.net

Hadron Collider in Switzerland

Students at the marina with Cawthron

scientist Dr. Grant Hopkins

December 2013 | News from the Thomas Cawthron Trust

Invasive species are an immense problem in the marine environment.

Undaria (Undaria pinnatifida) is an invasive seaweed, native to Japan,

now found throughout New Zealand waters.

There was great concern when the pest species was found in Breaksea

Sound, Fiordland National Park, back in April 2010. In a bid to keep the

park’s unique marine ecosystem free from the highly invasive Undaria, an

eradication attempt that included the use of biological control was initiated

by several government agencies. The programme involved transplanting

approximately 35,000 native sea urchins (Evechinus chloroticus), who

graze on seaweed, into a small area of reef to help control the spread of

Undaria.

Cawthron scientists came on board to carry out research to identify and

measure the impacts associated with the use of sea urchins as biocontrol

agents. They found the urchins rapidly grazed the native kelp forests

leaving behind ‘urchin barrens’, before spreading away or dying. Although

compared to the potential impacts related to the introduction of Undaria

into Fiordland, these described effects associated with the use of

biocontrol are ecologically minimal, and very localized. It is also expected

that native species will recover and recolonize the rocky reef. To read the

full publication online follow this link or visit www.cawthron.org.nz

Did You Know?

Black coral Antipathella fiordensis is

in fact white. It becomes black when it

dies and probably got its name from it

being dredged up, causing people to

think it is black. It is normally a deep

sea species and in Fiordland it is

found at depths of only 15-20m, due

to peat acids in the water which limit

sunlight penetration. Associated with

the coral is the brittlestar

Astrobrachion constrictum, it is

thought that they help the coral by

keeping it free of sediment.

KINA CONTROL

Black or White? Protected corals in Fiordland could be susceptible to invasive species such as Undaria

Urchins ready to be taken down by divers to control invasive seaweed Undaria at

Breaksea Sound, Fiordland

JELLYFISH FACTS

Jellyfish are found everywhere in

our oceans from right at the top

in the sunlit zone (epipelagic)

through to the deep midnight

zone (bathypelagic). They are

the oldest multi-organ animal in

the world and vary hugely in size

from 1mm to 2 metres in length.

The most common jellyfish found

in New Zealand is the moon jel-

lyfish, (Aurelia sp.). It is harmless

to humans but large blooms can

have complex ecological implica-

tions for wild and farmed fish.

Cawthron scientists are currently

working on describing their mor-

phology and genetic analysis to

better understand theses fasci-

nating creatures.

Moon jellyfish Aurelia sp. filled with

blue dye used to aid morphological

description.

BECOME A FRIEND—IT’S

FREE

You can now become a Friend of Cawthron for free. Friends are the first to hear about our current news through our quarterly newsletter (electronic or post).

Friends also receive advance notice and preferential invitations to Cawthron Institute open days

and the annual lecture.

We are also on Facebook, like our Friends of Cawthron page to be up to date with all our activities and see the photos of our events. So join now!

CALENDAR OF EVENTS 2014

We have a busy calendar of events, make sure you keep an eye of the

Friends of Cawthron Facebook page for our latest news. The next upcoming

events for 2014 are:

2nd—9th March NATIONAL SEAWEEK

‘Our fragile, finite Taonga’

Cawthron has a great array of activities planned, including:

Photo Competition-Our regional competition is supported by the Nelson mail

Public Lecture– listen to a Cawthron Scientist talk about their current research

Teacher Workshop– a free event for teaching staff

Hands-on activities for school students –visit out Facebook page for more information.

Saturday 15th March HAVELOCK MUSSEL FESTIVAL

Come and enjoy all things mussel, and learn all about Cawthron’s aquaculture research, with great displays, a

touch tank and the chance to meet our staff and ask them your burning questions.

Visit the Havelock Mussel Festival website www.havelockmusselfestival.co.nz for more info

December 2013 | News from the Thomas Cawthron Trust

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