Marine Science Otago

Wanting to learn more about marine monitoring and ocean stewardship? 🦀🐟🪼🐬

Check out this recording of another great Seaweek webinar, featuring the NZ Marine Studies Centre Director, Dr Sally Carson! 🦐🐠🐋🦈

Our last webinar explored how marine monitoring can be a powerful way for people to get involved in ocean stewardship through these three programmes:

Marine Metre2 surveys support understanding of and connection to coastal ecosystems. 🦀

Litter Intelligence monitoring helps to categorise/quantify litter, contributing to a database informing single-use plastic policy. 🥤

Mountains to Sea Conservation Trust helps spark kaitiakitanga in the Matai Bay area. Marine monitoring has revealed that snapper numbers are recovering following the establishment of the rāhui in 2017. 🐟

Learn more and watch the full webinar: https://seaweek.org.nz/news/inspiring-action-stories

A huge thanks to our webinar guests! Sally Carson from Marine Science Otago, Ben Knight from Sustainable Coastlines, Samara Nicholas and Ceara Wallace from Mountains to Sea Conservation Trust/Experiencing Marine Reserves - EMR. Thanks also to our webinar series sponsor the New Zealand National Commission (UNESCO) 🙌

So proud of Professor Abby Smith and our Postgraduate students for their achievements and contributions at NZMSS recently! 🥳

Ka pai tō mahi! Ka rawe! 🐟

A double winning-whammy for Marine Science staff and students at a recent marine science conference held in Hobart!

🌊 Professor Abby Smith received the prestigious 2024 NZ Marine Sciences Society Award for her outstanding and continued contributions to marine science.

🧑🏻‍🤝‍🧑🏻 Plus our postgraduate students took out the Battle of the Labs competition that’s awarded to the New Zealand university whose students receive the highest average score for presentations - Miharo!

Ka pai tō mahi! Read the full story here 🔗
https://www.otago.ac.nz/news/newsroom/national-recognition-for-marine-science
Marine Science Otago

Ka rawe to Marine Science and Ecology student Owen Dabkowski who won second and third place in Otago University's annual photo competition!

Owen’s photography is inspired by his love for nature and conservation 🌊

📷 His photo of a yellow-eyed penguin taken on the Otago Peninsula won Owen a silver medal, and the hermit crab snapped while in Tonga was awarded bronze!

Full story of the winning entries here 🔗
https://www.otago.ac.nz/news/newsroom/sea-life-for-the-win

Marine Science Otago Ecology Programme, University of Otago

The NZ Marine Studies Centre had a great time last week being a part of Enviroschools Otago Year 4-6 hui! Such an awesome day of investigating what’s out there in our local environment! 🦀🐠🌿🪰🪲🕷️🌳

36NM From Shore And The End Of An Era (and the beginning of new ones). After over 130 voyages, Doctor Kim Currie from Marine Science and NIWA may have just done her final transect on board Polaris II. Celebrations were abundant during the successful 12 hour voyage off the Otago Coast. Cake, bubbles, cheese and gifts, intermingled with science, collecting water samples from 800m deep(and compressing highly decorated styrofoam cups) made for a day to remember. CONGRATULATIONS KIM, we look forward to hearing about your retirement adventures.

The NZ Marine Studies Centre Aquavan 🚎 is having a great time over in Alexandra and Cromwell this week 🏔️

We’re collaborating on a programme with Otago Geology - University of Otago, New Zealand making coastal connections to the salt pans and Central Otago! 🐠🦀

Conservation Week is coming up on the 2-8th of September and the NZ Marine Studies Centre is taking part!

You can join us on one of our Marine Encounters Tours on Saturday the 7th of Sept by booking online here: https://events.humanitix.com/marine-encounters-at-the-nz-marine-studies-centre 🐟🦀🐙

Or if you happen to be in Cromwell during Conservation Week, join the Aquavan at a free Community Day held at Cromwell College on Thursday the 5th of September! For more information, see below. 🚚🤿🐟

For other events being run in your local area, visit DOC's event page here: https://www.doc.govt.nz/news/events/conservation-week/ 🐧🦭🌳🌿

Come and join us at the Department of Marine Science in town on the 6th of Sep for our monthly Departmental Seminar!

Emeritus Professor Steve Dawson will give a talk on Acoustic Adventures with Whales and Dolphins 🐬

More information below!

Not one, not two, but THREE inaugural professorial lectures to choose from over the next few weeks 🎉 These lectures are a career highlight for academics who earn the title of Professor and the research expertise of these three awesome wāhine highlights the incredible range of mahi taking place in the Sciences.
You are welcome to join (left to right) Ceridwen Fraser (Marine Science 🌊 – 6 August); Miranda Mirosa (Food Science 🥕 – 1 August) and Sarah Wakes (Mathematics & Statistics 🧮 – 15 August).
Their lectures can be attended in person or viewed on livestream – 🔗 here: https://www.otago.ac.nz/news/events

A frosty start, gives way to a stunning day! The University of Otago’s Research Vessel, Polaris II enables more than 250 students to gain experience profiling the waters of Otago Harbour this week.

Thank you to New Zealand International Science Festival for organising yet another fantastic event! We can’t wait for next year! 🐠

Come along to a public talk by Associate Professor Will Rayment at 5.30pm in the Barclay Theatre at Otago Museum.

He will talk about the recent local projects done by the Marine Megafauna Research Group at Otago University. Estimating survival rate of NZSL, bycatch risk of Hector’s dolphin and diversity of marine mammals over the Otago submarine canyons.

Hope to see you there! 🦭🐬🐋

Teachers... this is a great programme... take a look. The NZ Marine Studies Centre, Department of Marine Science have hosted teachers on this programme in the past and it has been a very positive experience.

Apply for the Science Teaching Leadership Programme Current status: Applications for Term 1 2025 are now open.

The NZ Marine Studies Centre will be at this awesome event at the Waitaki Recreation Centre on the 21st of July! 🐠🪸

There’ll be an amazing range of drop in stalls, displays, workshops and clever people to help you repair things! Come along and learn about all the ways you can reduce, reuse and recycle! ♻️😄

A great opportunity for the postgrads out there! 🐠

The Marks’ Ecology Award, Scholarships Database | University of Otago The Marks’ Ecology Award was created to support promising University of Otago students undertaking Ecology research.

The NZ Marine Studies Centre had a great time visiting schools in East Otago with the Aquavan! 🦀🐚

Thanks so much to East Otago Catchment Group and Community Trust of Otago for getting us there! And thanks so much to all the kaiako and ākonga that visited us! 🐠🪸

Together we can make a huge difference to the health and wellbeing of our catchments! 🌿🏞️

Youth Innovation Challenge | Global Environmental Education Partnership (GEEP) Join us on eePRO Global! Post resources, events, jobs, join groups, and share your profile with the community! Learn More

A very HAPPY Hannah. After multiple searches in various locations, Hannah Fox-McLachlan finally found what she was looking for! With a little help, a fantastic low tide and the perfect location, 13 elusive clingfish were collected as part of Hannah’s masters researchproject.

Come and join us at the Department of Marine Science in town on the 9th of May for a Marine Science Departmental Seminar! Learn about the changes that are happening in our marine ecosystems with Dr Kristy Kroeker from the University of California Santa Cruz! 🐬

Information below 🐟