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Friday, March 30, 2007
Govt. declares war on the long-spined sea urchin
The Council for the Environment and Territory Management of the Canary Island Government are to begin a new campaign to control the species, Diadema antillarum (Long-spined sea urchin) on the islands of Tenerife and Lanzarote shortly.
It always slightly amuses me that the way these reports sound in Spanish: a campaign, sounds like a military one and that they are going to send the equivalent of the SBS down to route out the epidemic of these pests that have been doing serious damage the sea bed off the Canary Islands for several years now. Too many urchins screws up the equilibrium of the ecosystems and conservation of various marine habitats, indirectly allowing other exotic species to colonize those areas.
Ironic that the urchins on this side of the Atlantic escaped completely, the disease which killed 97% of their number throughout the Caribbean in 1983, causing coral reefs there to be overcome by micro-algae which stifles coral growth and, resulting in widespread coral disease. (Maybe we should offer them our excess urchins?)
It just goes to show you how important balance is, with the right number of the various members of the food chain hierarchy, each having their part in the "grand scheme" and, how important it is that we protect these marine areas and not keep overfishing them, nor tipping heaven knows what kinds of waste into them.
Medio Ambiente pone en marcha una campaņa para el control del erizo de lima en Tenerife y Lanzarote
It always slightly amuses me that the way these reports sound in Spanish: a campaign, sounds like a military one and that they are going to send the equivalent of the SBS down to route out the epidemic of these pests that have been doing serious damage the sea bed off the Canary Islands for several years now. Too many urchins screws up the equilibrium of the ecosystems and conservation of various marine habitats, indirectly allowing other exotic species to colonize those areas.
Ironic that the urchins on this side of the Atlantic escaped completely, the disease which killed 97% of their number throughout the Caribbean in 1983, causing coral reefs there to be overcome by micro-algae which stifles coral growth and, resulting in widespread coral disease. (Maybe we should offer them our excess urchins?)
It just goes to show you how important balance is, with the right number of the various members of the food chain hierarchy, each having their part in the "grand scheme" and, how important it is that we protect these marine areas and not keep overfishing them, nor tipping heaven knows what kinds of waste into them.
Medio Ambiente pone en marcha una campaņa para el control del erizo de lima en Tenerife y Lanzarote
