Mauritius Marine Conservation Society – MMCS
Clean-up action: "ban zil pli prop"
(Nov 2015) The MMCS took part in a clean-up of the beach in Rivière des Galets, which was followed by an awareness session for the participants (mostly school children) where we held a presentation on the marine evironment and how it is affected by littering.
The clean-up action was coordinated by Belle Verte Ltd as part of the campaign “ban zil pli prop”, organized by the delegation of the European Union, the Embassy of France and the British High Commissioner in collaboration with the Ministry of the Environment and the Indian Ocean Commission.
Re-opening of the octopus fishing
(Oct 2015) On 10 October, the octopus fishing re-opened after two months voluntary closure between Le Morne and Souillac and the first results are very promising: the monitors recorded weights over 3 kg, to compare with an average of 1,2 kg before the closure.
The project is being carried out with the support of the Indian Ocean Commission (IOC) programmes SmartFish and Biodiversity, funded by the EU.
The last phase of this pilot project consists of education sessions on octopus but also on the marine environment in general for children and youth in the different villages within the project area.
A monitoring of the octopus fishing will be carried out on selected dates until end of January 2016.
Free film screening on the beach
(Sep 2015) A free film screening of “Planète Océan” by Yann-Arthus Bertrand was held on Flic en Flac public beach, Saturday 26 Sep. The event was organized with the support of the U.S. Embassy Mauritius & Seychelles.
Stay tuned for more events coming up soon!
Two months voluntary closure of octopus fishing
(Aug 2015) This is a pilot project in the south of Mauritius with the objective of making the octopus fishing more sustainable by allowing pregnant females to lay their eggs, which will lead to a weight increase of the individuals. It will in turn prove to the communities the benefits they can get out of this.
The project is being carried out with the support of the Indian Ocean Commission (IOC) programmes SmartFish and Biodiversity, funded by the EU.
Phase one has consisted of a feasibility study in the selected area of Le Morne-Souillac. Phase two is the actual implementation of the closure, 10 Aug-10 Oct 2015. It includes awareness and education as well as enforcement during the closure in cooperation with local fishermen, the NCG and FPS.
GEF SGP Knowledge Fair
(July 2015) The MMCS participated, together with other NGOs, in a 2-day Knowledge Fair at Caudan Waterfront in Port Louis to showcase the great projects being carried out in Mauritius and Rodrigues with the support from GEF Small Grants Programme.
This event was part of the 20th Anniversary in the Republic of Mauritius celebration of the Global Environment Facility Small Grants Programme (GEF SGP) implemented by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). A good opportunity to meet the general public, spread the word about our projects and do some valuable networking.
Fundraising evening
(June 2014) Saturday 7 June we held a fundraising evening at The Corner Bistro in Riverview Centre, Black River. The theme was Jule Verne’s “Twenty thousand leagues under the sea”.
The evening started off with a welcome cocktail and a door prize competition. Then our President, Olivier Tyack and Vice-President, Jacqueline Sauzier, gave a brief presentation of the MMCS and our activities. We enjoyed a delicious 3-course dinner, nicely animated by our MC, there was also a draw of the lucky winners in or raffle as well as an auction of paintings by the local artist Gabby Steel. By the end of the dinner we announced the winner in our “best accessory” competition, before the DJ took over and it was time to hit the dance floor.
A big thank you to all partners, sponsors and guests for supporting us and turning this evening into a success!
Presentation on sperm whales of the Mascarene Islands
(May 2014) Kelonia, the public aquarium and observatory specialising in Marine turtles in Saint-Leu, Reunion Island, invited our Scientific Coordinator, Imogen Webster, to present MMCS and its work during a joint presentation with Violaine Dulau from GLOBICE (NGO from Reunion Island working on whales and dolphins) who spoke about their recent sperm whale population study conducted in Mauritius.
The presentation was followed by the opening of a photo exhibition of sperm whales by Eric Lamblin. All photos were taken during his trips to Mauritius (there are very few sperm whales around Reunion Island).
Education sessions in primary schools
(April 2014) The second part of our diversity project has consisted of education sessions in primary schools, giving the children a basic comprehension of marine ecology to help them understand the need to preserve our marine environment.
During 3 months (Jan-Mar 2014) our Research Assistant visited 24 primary schools all over the island (2 schools, twice a week), performing education sessions for in total 1100 children in the age of 9-11 years. The sessions included teaching them about corals, dolphins, whales, sea turtles and sea birds that can be seen in Mauritius.
After each session, an oral quiz was held with the children to check how much they had understood and learnt. The average percentage of correct answers ranged between 83 and 100%.
The humpback whale season 2013
This year’s humpback whale season, now over, has been good. We’ve encountered a lot more mothers and calves than last year and in various spots; both in the north and on the west coast. There has also been reported sightings on the east coast of Mauritius.
We’ve increased our photo identification catalog with quite a few new flukes and are now in the phase of comparing them with existing photos, to see how many new individuals we’ll find.
The humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae) is migrating to tropical seas during the austral winter to mate and give birth before returning to Antarctic feeding grounds in summer. They are generally sighted in Mauritian shallow waters (15m +) from July to October/November.
Turtles
As part of our diversity study, we record turtle sightings around the island. In the last week of September, a skipper in Black River brought us a dead green turtle, a juvenile female. This is the second dead turtle found in Black River Bay this year. We conducted an autopsy, however no obvious cause of death was found.
On a more positive note, we’ve had quite a few sightings of live turtles, in Black River Bay as well as along the north west coast. Marine turtles are protected under the Mauritian law and two species can be found in our waters: the green turtle (Chelonia mydas) is endangered and the hawksbill turtle (Eretmochelys imbricata) is critically endangered. If you find an injured or trapped turtle, please contact us.
Seal Rescue Attempt
On Tuesday 30 July, the MMCS got a call from the Mauritian Wildlife Foundation (MWF) staff on Ile aux Aigrettes. A fur seal had shown up on the rocks at the Preskil Beach Resort, which is situated on the mainland opposite the island.
The MWF went to get it and looked after it overnight, rehydrating it and trying to feed it. We alerted the Albion Fisheries Research Centre (AFRC), following the national “Action plan for stranded marine mammals/turtles”.
The next morning our staff and volunteers went to pick it up and transported it to the AFRC, where they had prepared their facilities to receive and look after the seal; it was placed in one of their fish ponds.
For several days our Scientific Coordinator helped trying to feed it but the seal was very underweight and weak and not responding well to the care. Despite everyone’s efforts, the seal unfortunately didn’t make it; it passed away during the night between 4 and 5 August.
If you find a stranded marine animal (whale, dolphin, seal, turtle, etc.), please call the MMCS on 483 7781 and AFRC on 238 4100. It is important that qualified people deal with these animals; it’s illegal to touch/move them and it can be dangerous for both parties (diseases, bites, etc.)
Les Aventures De Cyril A L'ile Maurice
Le 9 Août 2006, au petit matin, les habitants des Salines Pilot à Rivière-Noire, ont eu la surprise de découvrir, écroué sur la plage devant chez eux, un étrange animal, un animal que l’on n’a
pas l’habitude de voir à Maurice.
Inquiets du sort de ce nouveau venu, des habitants des Salines appellent le MMCS à la rescousse. Coup de chance pour nous, le vétérinaire français, Michel Vely, président de l’association Megaptera, se trouve justement à Maurice ce jour-là pour une «sortie baleines» et a pu se rendre sur place pour dresser un constat rapide : Il s’agit d’un mammifère marin, plus précisément un éléphant de mer, de l’espèce Mirunga leonina. Il s’agit d’un mâle. D’autre part, sa taille, (moins de 2 mètres), plutôt petite pour un animal de cette espèce dont les mâles adultes peuvent mesurer jusqu’à 6 mètres de long, laisse penser qu’il s’agit d’un jeune. Comme la période de reproduction se situe vers Septembre/ Octobre chez cette espèce, notre mammifère aurait donc moins d’un an. Cette hypothèse se confirme bien par l’observation de sa dentition. Or ces animaux ne vivent que dans les eaux froides des terres australes, non loin de l’Antarctique : îles Crozet, Kerguelen, Amsterdam. Cet éléphant de mer se retrouve donc bien loin de chez lui, de son groupe et de son environnement familier. Il est alors parrainé par le MMCS, et vite baptisé Cyril, du nom du gardien qui, faisant sa ronde par la plage l’a découvert en premier.
«Phoquette» à l'île Maurice
Un nouvel échouage de mammifère marin a eu lieu à l’île Maurice pendant les vacances,
plus précisément le 10 août 2005, devant l’hôtel Prince Maurice. Il s’agit cette fois d’un
jeune mâle phoque à fourrure baptisé «Phoquette». Il a été pris en charge par l’équipe
de «Reef Conservation Mauritius» qui s’est chargé de le nourrir pendant son séjour chez
nous à l’aide d’une mixture à base de poissons frais, calamars frais et crème fraîche, et
de lui trouver un moyen pour le réintroduire dans son milieu naturel.
C’est ainsi que le 09/09/05 «Phoquette» s’est envolé pour l’Afrique du sud où il
séjournera d’abord au zoo de Port-Elisabeth pendant quelques temps, pour ensuite être
réintroduit en milieu naturel à Seal Island près de East-London. Aux dernières nouvelles
il se porte très bien.
Nous voudrions ici saluer les efforts de Iain Watt (cf. Figure 2 ) et de son équipe
de «Reef Conservation Mauritius» ainsi que les volontaires qui se sont succédés dans sa
cuisine pour broyer, et malaxer : poissons, calamars, crème fraîche, tous les jours
pendant un mois afin que «Phoquette» puisse survivre.
Merci à la S.A.A qui a sponsorisé son «billet avion».
Merci au Rotary club PL qui a sponsorisé l’achat de sa nourriture.
Merci à la communauté des pêcheurs de Grand Gaube pour leur aide en général.
Ti Joe the Seal in Rodrigues
Tuesday 18 th of August 2009, on this very fresh morning at 5h30 am, a strange animal
was found along the road of Pointe La Gueule, Rodrigues. It was found by a man doing
his jogging very early in the morning. He didn’t want to leave the animal unattended;
he waited to give the alert. A Fisheries Officer who was on his way to work, stopped and
inspected the animal.
The animal was identified as a seal, a baby seal of about 1.5m long and weighting
approximatly 100kg. There were no physical signs of injuries and for unknown reasons,
the animal had stranded onto the beach. It was promptly baptised ‘Ti Joe’, after Joe the
Elephant seal that came ashore in Mauritius many years earlier.
The crowd started to grow as the news of Ti Joe spread faster than sound in the nearby
villages.
It was low tide and there was no possibility to take Ti Joe back to deep water, so it was
decided to wait for the tide to come in. The seal was never left unattended as there were
always people there to look after it. However at some stages it was apparent that Tio Joe
was disturbed by the crowds. At high tide the animal swam away. Everyone thought it had been able to find its way out to the open sea, a few days later it was found in the mangroves at Baie Malgache some 3km from where it was first discovered.
The staff of Shoals Rodrigues were solicited to help the seal to find its way back home.
Two staff came and helped to remove the seal from the mangroves and at high tide
guided it out to the high seas. Thus Ti Joe left Rodrigues on this Saturday 22nd of August 2009. We all wished him a nice trip home. However it would be interesting to know why these animals are lured ashore so regularly! This being the second seal to visit Rodrigues this year. A few months ago a big male seal came ashore for a short while in the North of Rodrigues.