{"id":731629,"date":"2026-08-08T15:58:21","date_gmt":"2026-08-08T15:58:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/731629\/"},"modified":"2026-08-08T15:58:21","modified_gmt":"2026-08-08T15:58:21","slug":"love-in-the-seagrass-new-website-details-life-of-studland-seahorses-swanage-news","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/731629\/","title":{"rendered":"Love in the seagrass: New website details life of Studland seahorses \u2013 Swanage News"},"content":{"rendered":"

Divers monitoring rare seahorses in Studland Bay in Dorset have witnessed more than they bargained for this summer, observing elaborate courtship dances between couples, the passionate intertwining of tails, and even one male seahorse giving birth.<\/p>\n

However all the data collected by the Isle of Purbeck Sub Aqua Club and researchers from the University of Southampton is helping scientists understand more about the protected species and its fragile seagrass habitat.<\/p>\n

\"\"Brad Wakefield \/ The National Trust<\/p>\n

The seahorses are recorded and photographed as part of a long-running monitoring programme organised by the University of Southampton, with specialist licences held by The Seahorse Trust<\/p>\n

Hidden underwater world<\/p>\n

The information about the seahorses will also be published on a new Studland Bay Marine Partnership website informing more people about what is going on beneath the waves at South Beach in Studland.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The volunteer divers say they are regularly locating seahorses during surveys, but it\u2019s too early to draw conclusions about the 2026 population trends.<\/p>\n

The website also explains how boaters can help protect this rare and fragile marine habitat by using eco-moorings rather than traditional anchors, which can uproot the seagrass.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Ken Collins with two divers preparing to go out on another session at Studland<\/p>\n

\u201cHopeful signs of a healthy population\u201d<\/p>\n

Ken Collins, research fellow and diving officer at the University of Southampton, was fortunate enough to witness a male seahorse giving birth, and said:<\/p>\n

\u201cThe really exciting thing about our last dive, two weeks ago, was seeing a number of pregnant male seahorses and one about to pop.<\/p>\n

\u201cMale seahorses fertilise the eggs inside their brood pouch and incubate them for a month, controlling the water flow, oxygen, and nutrient levels to the young, so it is a true male pregnancy.<\/p>\n

\u201cAfter a month they are then about ready to start releasing them through strong body spasms, several hundred fully formed, tiny fry \u2013 but like most fish, they leave the young to fend for themselves, so very few survive.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis year, we have seen the courtship dance between males and females, and the young being released, these are all hopeful signs of a healthy population in Studland Bay.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe might see three in an hour\u2019s dive, but the encouraging thing is that the number we are seeing tends to be increasing.<\/p>\n

\"\"KEN COLLINS<\/p>\n

A pregnant male spiny seahorse spotted off South Beach, Studland, by Ken Collins of Southampton University<\/p>\n

\u201cStars of the show\u201d<\/p>\n

Ken Collins added:<\/p>\n

\u201cThey are very well camouflaged, so they are not very well studied, and we don\u2019t go out with an expectation of seeing them. As a scientist, I can say that the trend is looking good, but it\u2019s difficult to quantify.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe seahorses may be the stars of the show, but they are also indicators of the wider health of the seagrass ecosystem. Our volunteer divers have spent thousands of hours collecting information about the species and habitats found in Studland Bay.<\/p>\n

\u201cSeagrass is a great habitat for baby fish to hide in and we have seen a whole variety of them, so even when we don\u2019t get to see seahorses we will find a lot of other life in the seagrass meadows, like wrasse, pollock, bream, and sand eel.<\/p>\n

\u201cOne of the most encouraging things is that old holes in the seagrass meadows caused by anchoring chains are filling in again thanks to the voluntary no anchor zone, so the fields are gradually recovering.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur divers have been seeing encouraging numbers of seahorses this summer, but it is still too early to say whether the population has increased in 2026, and natural populations fluctuate anyway, year on year.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe do have lots of evidence that the meadow is getting stronger year on year, and the increase in seahorse sightings has coincided with getting protection for the bay.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Another pair of divers head out to the seagrass meadows of Studland Bay<\/p>\n

Not everyone chooses to pay<\/p>\n

The protection comes through Studland Bay\u2019s voluntary no-anchor zone, introduced in 2021 to reduce damage caused by traditional anchors dragging through the seagrass.<\/p>\n

Instead, boaters are encouraged to use one of the bay\u2019s 87 ecomoorings, which hold vessels securely without anything scraping across the seabed.<\/p>\n

Although the ecomoorings are becoming increasingly popular, maintaining them costs around \u00a3100,000 a year, with the voluntary \u00a37.50 daily mooring charge covering only about a fifth of those annual costs, as not everybody chooses to pay.<\/p>\n

Teams from Studland Water Sports at Knoll Beach patrol the project, like ambassadors, and will go up to moored boats to explain how important it is to use them, and even take payment if necessary.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Studland Bay Marine Partnership communications officer Cathy Lewis, left, with the team from Southampton University<\/p>\n

\u201cRich and thriving marine landscape\u201d<\/p>\n

Cathy Lewis, communications officer for the Studland Bay Marine Partnership and the National Trust, said:<\/p>\n

\u201cPeople are often amazed to discover that beneath the surface of Studland Bay is a rich and thriving marine landscape.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur new website aims to bring that hidden world to life. Seahorses capture people\u2019s imagination, but they are just one part of a much bigger story.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhether people are interested in marine wildlife, seagrass conservation or boating, we want them to understand why this habitat matters and how small actions can make a real difference to its future.\u201d<\/p>\n

The annual figures of seahorses in Studland Bay and other related data won\u2019t be available until the end of the diving season in autumn 2026.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Nick Reed is one of several Swanage divers from the Isle of Purbeck Sub Aqua Club who have helped monitor the seahorses this year<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

South Beach, Studland, looking beautiful in the morning light<\/p>\n

\"\"TOM MILLS<\/p>\n

Divers have witnessed a number of seahorse courtship dances in their monitoring sessions this year<\/p>\n

\"\"Brad Wakefield \/ The National Trust<\/p>\n

Ecomoorings in Studland Bay are helping the seagrass meadows to repair themselves and grow strongly again<\/p>\n

\"\"JON BUNKER<\/p>\n

Studland\u2019s seagrass meadows are now hosting all kinds of marine life in addition to the seahorses<\/p>\n

\"\"TOM MILLS<\/p>\n

One of Studland\u2019s spiny seahorse herd<\/p>\n

Further informationWatch video of a pregnant male seahorse at Studland<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Divers monitoring rare seahorses in Studland Bay in Dorset have witnessed more than they bargained for this summer,…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":731630,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[26],"tags":[90,56,54,55,4407],"class_list":["post-731629","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-wildlife","tag-science","tag-uk","tag-united-kingdom","tag-unitedkingdom","tag-wildlife"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/731629","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=731629"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/731629\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/731630"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=731629"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=731629"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=731629"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}