The NZ Marine Studies Centre is encouraging communities to get involved in long term monitoring of the marine environment. The Marine Metre Squared (Mm2) project was launched, nationwide, during Seaweek 2013. Participants are able to upload information about what they find on their local shore to the mm2.net.nz website, and to map and graph their data for comparison over time, between regions and between species.
Whether you are an individual, a family, a community group or a school, we would welcome your input.
There are two ways you can take part:
Marine Metre Squared is an easy way to survey the intertidal community. Monitor a 1m x 1m square patch of you local shore once every season by recording the animals and plants that live there and the numbers found in the measured area. Take part in special scientific studies and fun educational challenges such as hunting for pest species, looking for evidence of animals breeding and measuring seaweed growth. Help others identify their new finds with the online forum. Submit your own questions and encourage others around NZ to take part. Perfect for families looking for holiday activities and schools and community groups looking for ways to engage with and improve their local environment.
The NZ Seashore Survey has been developed for Secondary Schools as part of a meaningful environmental science project that supports the intent of the revised New Zealand Curriculum and assessment for NCEA Biology. It provides protocols for students to survey the rocky shore from high to low tide which can be used as a valid context for the new ecology achievement standard 91158: Investigate a pattern in an ecological community, with supervision. This survey data could tell us so much about the rocky intertidal zones of New Zealand, yet it is rarely put to use outside the classroom.
To learn more, visit the Marine Metre Square project website and follow us on FaceBook or Twitter
Download a Marine Metre Squared flyer (PDF file, 1.6 MB)
Download a Marine Metre Squared flyer with simple instructions (PDF file, 1.9 MB)
Marine Metre Squared Newsletters
Mm2 newsletters are full of useful information and tips on how to carry out surveys, identify marine life, take great photographs and much more.