Stepping stone to marine biologist

In her second year of studying towards a Bachelor of Science at UC and with a goal to become a marine biologist, Ella has been loving the work she has been doing at Te Ana Marina.

Ella Peoples provided assistance to the dive team during our fanworm removal project at the end of last year. Detecting the difference between native and invasive fanworm species, measuring and collecting data, Ella was an invaluable part of the project.

Ella’s enthusiasm and knowledge for the marine environment has led her to undertake additional support for LPC as well as completing a research project at Te Ana.

Fortnightly water quality monitoring across 9 sites at Te Ana Marina supports the Clean Marina Pledge and provides useful baseline data for LPC.

A range of instruments are used to test parameters of water quality including dissolved oxygen, water temperature, conductivity, pH and total suspended solids.

Occasionally water samples are also sent through to a laboratory for analysis to look at things like heavy metals, microbiology, and productivity.

Overall, the water quality within Te Ana is of high quality. However, during and after rainfall, the stormwater from the town catchment is a major source of pollution entering the harbour.

“These factors are vital in understanding the long-term trends and variability of water quality and begin to determine causes of poor water quality,” says Ella.

“Water quality contributes to overall ecosystem health and the health of the water for people to use for swimming and food gathering.”

The second part to Ella’s research was surveys of the pontoons, to understand what marine organisms are living on them.

“I looked at the 9 sites around the marina, using a camera rig to guide a GoPro underneath the pontoon, with the aim of identifying 21 different species, both native and invasive.

“This would give me a greater understanding of what invasive species may have entered the harbour and their co-existance with native species.

“While there were invasive species present, which you would unfortunately expect to find, there were natives as well.

“This includes native blue and green mussels, which are fantastic to have as they are natural water cleaners. Mussels filter the water in order to gain food.”

Ella will be continuing her work through next year and hopes to expand her work to other areas across the Port, allowing her to compare her findings.

“I’ve really enjoyed my time here and have learnt so much, it’s definitely something I want to pursue in the future.”