Turning the tide

Community conservation group Tidal Warriors came together on Sunday morning, August 30 to take on litterers and environmental law-breakers on the frontline of the Dolphin Coast’s beaches.

The group met at High Rock, next to Thompsons Bay to collect data, clear away litter and educate members of the public during the extra-low spring tide as part of a drive to get as many members of the community passionate and involved in local marine conservation as possible.

Michy Morris, Duncan Pritchard, Billi-Jean Parker, Andrew Rylance, Heather Pienaar and Warren Botes gathered together with camera, snorkelling gear and plastic bags in hand to check on the health of different species.

“We removed so much fishing line and trash lying around, and even found three dead crabs tangled in fishing line, which was really depressing.

“We will be keeping all the fishing line we gathered in and outside the rock pools during spring tides and take a photo at the end of the year,” said Morris, who hopes to educate people of the damage being caused to the marine ecosystem.

The focal point of the group’s mission is to introduce members of the public of the many beautiful and relatively unknown animals that call our coastline home, and to educate people of the damage being done to it.

“Perhaps we can even make something out of all the fishing line, which would be a really interesting project too – especially for kids,” said Morris, who added that a group of children on holiday joined the Warriors to help clear litter off the rocks and collect data on the different species that were found.

The group is looking to gain traction in their cause by running Tidal Warriors exclusively through the community, and Morris hopes their ranks will continue to swell as more data has been collected and photographs captured.

“Another plus was having a local police officer, a Mr Hoosen, being very interested in what we were doing. He is a local fisherman himself and said he has a big group of friends who also cleans up High Rock occasionally, and expressed his desire to join our group and make a positive difference on the coast,” said Morris.

The group has also expressed a need for potential donors to the group who would be interested in sponsoring t-shirts that can be worn while the group cleans in order to make a bigger impact.

“We also desperately need sharp knives or sizers to cut line off corals, gloves to avoid getting cut on the rocks while we clean, decent shoes to walk on the rocks, plastic bags to throw all the rubbish in, sticks with a sharp pin in front to avoid touching dirt and trash and, if possible – cameras to take photos of all the interesting animals we find, said Morris, who added that without a decent photo, there is no proof that these fascinating animals even exist.