Our local university this week announced plans to take part in the brand new “Capturing our Coast” project. The nationwide project aims to boost our understanding of the UK coastline and all the marine wildlife that lives along it.

It’s hoped that more than 3,000 volunteers across Britain will be trained to go out and look for samples of wildlife for scientists to study. The big budget project is being funded by the Heritage Lottery Fund and is being led by the University of Newcastle. Our local university at Bangor are looking for volunteers to help gather samples along the North Wales coastline. It’s a great way to get involved with this fantastic project, and to learn more about the wildlife on our doorstep.

The project, dubbed as a citizen science project because of the large number of non-scientists taking part, will be the largest of it’s kind in the UK. Volunteers will be responsible for collecting data and samples of some key marine species. it’s hoped that the research will help conservation strategies for the future, in order that our beautiful coastlines are properly protected.

Having an army of volunteers across the UK means that the scientists in charge will be able to carry out the same experiment at the same time in numerous different locations – something that is often tricky because of the cost involved.

So why not get involved this year and contribute something very special to the future of our coastline? Not only will it get you out and about exploring our beautiful beaches but you might learn something too!

You can find out more information here, or to register your interest, send an e-mail to [email protected]

Image by Holger Selover-Stephan on freeimages.com