🌏 International Data Week is happening from 13-16 Oct 2025! 📊 This year's theme - Data for Positive Change: Empowering Communities and Advancing Research - highlights how ethical, collaborative, and innovative data use can drive impact across science and society. Learn more: idw2025.org

📈 🌊 New marine data published!!🌊 📈 Discover our latest published datasets with 5 new datasets from the 2025 Environment Agency data for the UK marine strategy's Article 8 biodiversity assessment, accessible through the MEDIN portal now! 🌍https://portal.medin.org.uk/portal/start.php 🔍 #MarineData

🪸Tricky Taxon Thursday: Sabellaria alveolata 🪸 The honeycomb worm, a polychaete, constructs protective tubes from sand and shell fragments, creating a honeycomb pattern reef, supporting up to 38 other species and are common on the south and west coasts of the UK. Explore 5000+ records here 👇

The Biological Data Management 2025 course, by the Flemish Marine Institute and OceanTeacher Global Academy, is self-paced and available online until November 2025. Providing essential data management skills for students, researchers, and data enthusiasts. Sign up now!👉 oceanexpert.org/event/4846

🌊 🐟 Welcome back to Sea Spectacles! 🪼 🫧 This month’s star is the mauve stinger - a glowing jellyfish with long, stinging tentacles! 🪼 Its vibrant bell is covered in tiny cells that deliver a powerful sting. ✨ @thembauk.bsky.social #DASSH #SeaSpectacles #MauveStinger

We’ve just published a new blog on iNaturalist UK, featuring marine species to spot in late summer - plus tips on where and how to find them along our coastlines. It’s your perfect guide to making the most of the season’s marine wonders. 🪼 🌊 Dive into the full post here: buff.ly/UARJFek

🪸Tricky Taxon Thursday: Sabella spallanzanii 🪸 The European fan worm, native to the NE Atlantic and Mediterranean, thrives in calm, nutrient-rich waters. It builds sandy tubes and filters plankton with its tentacle crown. Females release up to 50,000 eggs each season. See 47 records here 👇

✨📊Celebrating incredible women in data!📊✨ We applaud the Woman in Data group, a charity supporting women in data, and our DASSH data team for their contributions to marine data🐟. With only 1 in 5 data professionals being women, let's empower more women in data!📈 @thembauk.bsky.social #WomenInData

👀 Seen a slipper lobster? 🦞 Let us know! The small but distinctive Scyllarus arctus is rarely spotted in UK waters, and every sighting helps build a better picture of its range. 📍 If you’ve seen one, send a photo, and details of the sighting to [email protected] 📷 Sean M Dixon #DASSH

💬 We’d love to hear from you! Your feedback helps us improve how we share and manage marine data. If you’ve accessed or contributed data to DASSH, please take a few minutes to fill out our short feedback form: 👉 buff.ly/5qHDdYA Thank you for helping us make DASSH even better! 🌊📊 📷 Ellen Jones

🪸Tricky Taxon Thursday: Ericaria selaginoides 🪸 The rainbow wrack, or magic seaweed, changes from brown to blue-green when submerged. It has a sturdy stipe with spiky branches, reaching 60 cm. Often found in tidal pools along the southern and western UK coasts. See 709 records here 👇

🚨 Invasive Alert: Mitten Crabs 🦀⚠️ They may look cute with their furry claws, but these East Asian crabs are invading new waters and harming native ecosystems. If you see one, report it! Find out more 👉 buff.ly/WH3JRMt 📷 Mark Rowley #DASSH #MarineData #MittenCrab @thembauk.bsky.social

🌊 🐟 Welcome back to Sea Spectacles! 🪼 🫧 Dive into the underwater world with this month's feature: the Moon Jellyfish!🌙 These common jellies drift with the currents, showcasing the ocean's simple beauty 🪼 @thembauk.bsky.social #MoonJellyfish #SeaSpectacles #OceanLife

🪸Tricky Taxon Thursday: clibanarius erythropus 🪸 The St Piran’s crab, a hermit crab up to 30mm, lives in empty Dogwhelk shells. Preferring warm waters, it has recently reappeared in the UK, and has blue patterns. Named after Saint Piran, a hermit who survived being cast to sea. See 6 records here👇

🌊 New marine biodiversity data just dropped on the DASSH mapper! 🐚 🔹 2022 MBA Mount Batten Bioblitz 🔹 First UK sighting of Berghia coerulescens 🔹 2022–2024 UK oyster aquaculture sediment surveys 🔗 Dive in: www.dassh.ac.uk/dasshmapper @thembauk.bsky.social #DASSH #MarineData 📷 Ellen Jones

🐙 Why Are We Seeing So Many Octopuses? 👀 We've just published a blog diving into the possible reasons behind the apparent surge in octopus sightings along the Southwest coast recently. If you’re curious about marine life, or just love octopuses, this one’s for you! 👉 Read here: buff.ly/5vfPbWA

🪸Tricky Taxon Thursday: caryophyllia smithii🪸 The Devonshire cup coral is a solitary species, ~2.5cm & <80 tentacles. Often mistaken for anemones, a hard body makes it a coral. It has 2 forms: var. smithii -found <100m deep & var. clavus -found 50-1000m & smaller/Narrower. See 540 records here👇

📱🦀 Turn Your Beach Stroll into a Wildlife Discovery! 🌍🔍 ✨Download the free iNaturalist app and join a global community of nature lovers. Simply snap a photo of any plant or animal life and the app will help you identify it, log it, and contribute to real scientific research.🙌🔗https://buff.ly/hJa1XQk

🎉 Big Rock Pool Challenge: BioBlitz Festival 2025 🦀🌊 Join @therockpoolproject.bsky.social 19–20 Sept for 24hrs of coastal wildlife recording, talks, workshops & outdoor fun! 🌍 Our Coast. Our Climate. Our Future. 🌿 Night rock pooling, snorkelling, citizen science & more! 👉 Sign up: buff.ly/2Coj0d7

🪸Tricky Taxon Thursday: Aplysia punctata🪸 Dotted sea hares 🐌 have internal shells & ‘bunny ear’ rhinophores. They're hermaphrodites & can form mating chains! Diet affects colour - green seaweed = green hue. 📍2463 records: bit.ly/455hwuy

🪸 Tricky Taxon Thursday: Scyliorhinus stellaris 🪸 The Nursehound catshark, a nocturnal benthic shark up to 160 cm. Females lay eggs on seaweed/rocks, hatch in 5-11 months. Also named the greater-spotted catshark, bull huss, and rough hound shark, it's found in all UK waters. See 391 records here👇

🎉 Congratulations to Chloe, DASSH Data Manager, on being appointed Co-chair of the @medin.bsky.social Communications Working Group! 👏 Chloe brings experience from OBIS, UK/EU data initiatives & years of MEDIN work. Please join us in congratulating Chloe on this well-deserved appointment! 🎊

🌊 How is ocean data shaping global decisions? @univie.ac.at is conducting a survey on Ocean Data and its use in different communities involved in ocean-related negotiations: decision makers, diplomats, non-state actors, scientists. 📝 Fully anonymous & quick to complete: buff.ly/K3Tgi66

🚨 Big news for rotifer fans! 🌊🌀 The Rotifer World Catalog has a new home on the Aphia platform, alongside WoRMS! Now hosting all published rotifer names + key biological & specimen data. 🔬 A big step for taxonomy & accessibility! 🔗 buff.ly/CtAGbcj 📷 Michael Plewka @marinespecies.bsky.social

🌊🔍 Join @therockpoolproject.bsky.social for an August BioBlitz! 🗓️ Sat 9 Aug | ⏰ 11:30–2 📍 Castle Beach, Falmouth & Mount Batten, Plymouth Explore rockpools, spot sea creatures & join the #BigRockPoolChallenge! 🦀🐚🐟 All ages welcome - bring wellies! 🔗 buff.ly/r8sCIoG @thembauk.bsky.social

🪸Tricky Taxon Thursday: Holothuria forskali 🪸 The cotton spinner gets its name from the sticky white threads that it shoots out when threatened to confuse predators🥒It's dorsal surface is black with many small papillae, while its underside is often yellow. See 1 record here👇 bit.ly/3ISWZAQ

📢 New monthly webinar series from medin.bsky.social! 🌊 Starting 20 Aug 2025, 14:00–15:00 UK time Join for expert-led sessions on improving marine data practices across all sectors. Topics range from stewardship to interoperability, vocabularies, and global sharing. Full schedule 👉 buff.ly/KDq6f2j

🌊 🐟 Welcome back to Sea Spectacles! 🪼 🫧 This month’s star is the spotted ray - a graceful glider of the deep, cloaked in nature’s polka dots! ✨ Did you know their unique patterns help them blend seamlessly into the ocean floor? @thembauk.bsky.social #SeaSpectacles #SpottedRay #MarineBiodiversity

🪸Tricky Taxon Thursday: Eulalia clavigera 🪸 The green leaf worm has a vibrant emerald green colour and can grow up to 15cm long, its body is divided up into 200 segments, classifying it a polychaete worm. It can also be found in rockpools during low tide. See 35 records here👇 bit.ly/4fg9IcP

🌊 New marine biodiversity data! 🦀🐟🌿 Now live on the DASSH mapper: 🔹 2016–21 MBA Europe Crab Watch 🔹 2024 FISP/NEIFCA Habitat Video Tow 🔹 2023 Seasearch North Wales 🔹 2022-24 FISP Oyster Aquaculture Sites Mumbles 🔍 Dive into the data 👉 buff.ly/kc0voI0 @thembauk.bsky.social #MarineData #DASSH

🪸Tricky Taxon Thursday: Ammothea hilgendorfi🪸 The Pacific brown-banded sea-spider has thin legs that are longer than their bodies🕷️Male sea spiders carry their eggs on their legs until they hatch. This non-native species was first observed in the UK in 1978. See 58 records here👇http://bit.ly/3UfOAtt

🎉 We’ve got a fresh new look! 🎉 The revamped DASSH website is live! Better navigation, easier access to data tools, the DASSH mapper, citizen science tools and more! Explore how DASSH can support your marine biodiversity data needs 👇 🌐 www.dassh.ac.uk @thembauk.bsky.social #MarineData

🦈 Shark Awareness Day 🦈 Let's change the way we view sharks! Often misunderstood, they're vital for healthy oceans. With 1,000 species of sharks, skates, and rays, they're diverse and fascinating. Learn more at The Shark Trust 👉 www.sharktrust.org #SharkAwarenessDay #MarineSpecies #DASSH

🪸Tricky Taxon Thursday: Sepia officinalis🪸 The common cuttlefish is of the largest with a mantle length of 45cm. They are known as “chameleons of the sea” as they change the colour of their skin for camouflage or mating, using chromatophores. See 1527 records here👇 www.dassh.ac.uk/dasshmapper

🤖 AI is part of daily life, but it’s not flawless. Errors happen when sources aren’t reliable. That’s why trusted data matters. At DASSH, we archive high-quality data from marine research to help you verify and fact-check. 🔍 Trust the source 👉 www.dassh.ac.uk/dasshmapper #DASSH #MarineData

🫧🦪 New Dataset Published! 🦪🫧 We've just published a dataset from a sediment sampling survey examining ecosystem benefits of UK oyster aquaculture sites in Lindisfarne, Northumberland. Explore the dataset here ➡️ buff.ly/k0ojquD @themba.bky.social #DASSH #MarineData

☀️🐟 Tricky Taxon Thursday: Mola mola 🐟☀️ The ocean sunfish is a gentle giant - flat, odd-looking, and weighs up to 1,320 kg! Despite its shape, it's graceful in open water, though its anatomy still stumps scientists! 🗺️ Explore 748 records: buff.ly/ygtARxm 📷 : Ellen Jones @thembauk.bsky.social

🐚🦐 New Dataset Published 🐚🦐 We’ve just published a dataset from a seabed survey that studied changes in contaminants and macrofaunal species assemblages before the Harding-Devenick pipeline installation. 👀 Explore the full data here 👉 buff.ly/wUYBqGc @thembauk.bsky.social #DASSH #MarineData

🌊 New from @marinespecies.bsky.social: The World List of Octocorallia! 🪸 🌍 Explore 3,675+ species of soft corals, sea fans, sea pens and more in this global taxonomy and biodiversity resource! 🔗 buff.ly/xEjJvY1 @themba.bsky.social #WoRMS #MarineTaxonomy

🪸Tricky Taxon Thursday: Beroe cucumis🪸 Check out the melon comb jelly! It's sack-shaped, transparent and can grow to 15cm & swim with combs to create a shimmery effect✨They look like jellyfish but are part of a different phylum (Ctenophores). See 343 records at DASSH 👇https://buff.ly/04Ybn8C

⭐ Join the Big Rock Pool Challenge in Falmouth or Plymouth this summer! 🌊🐚 Race to find and ID local marine species while contributing important data to support marine biodiversity conservation. Sign up now! 👉 buff.ly/mU2BJTs @thembauk.bsky.social @therockpoolproject.bsky.social

🦭 New dataset alert! 🦭 Check out the 1974 survey of grey seal populations in Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly - a rare glimpse into the past for marine conservation. Explore here 👉 buff.ly/4JtdYuF @thembauk.bsky.social #DASSH #MarineData 📷: Ellen Jones

🌊 🦈 Welcome to Sea Spectacles! 🪼 🫧 Each month, we’ll introduce you to a new species. From jellyfish to deep-sea creatures. This month, we’re shining the spotlight on the speedy and sleek Porbeagle shark! A close relative of the much loved Great White that can be found in UK waters🦈#SeaSpectacles

Last week the DASSH team took to Tinside, Plymouth, for a mini BioBlitz event, testing out the new app that will power @therockpoolproject.bsky.social‬! Excited to see how this tech helps us explore and record our amazing coastal life 🌊📱🦀 @inaturalist.bsky.social‬ #BioBlitz #BigRockPoolChallenge

🪱 New Dataset Released! 🦀 We’re excited to announce the publication of the 1996 ‪@scottishepa.bsky.social‬ Dipple Shore Survey dataset! This valuable resource offers detailed species abundance data collected from core samples nearly three decades ago. 📊 Explore the dataset here: buff.ly/nf5evD9

🚨Applications open for Big Rock Pool Challenge local hubs!🦀 @therockpoolproject.bsky.social is expanding - get training, gear & support to run monthly BioBlitz Battles. Start as a ‘Pilot Hub’ with smaller events if you want! 📆Deadline: 31st July 🔗Apply: buff.ly/J2aym5w @thembauk.bsky.social‬

🪸Tricky Taxon Thursday: Dromia personata🪸 The Sponge Crab attaches sponges to it's carapace, forming a symbiotic relationship where crabs can camouflage and sponges are protected from predators🦀It is recognised by its pink pincers and hairy body! See 119 records here 👇 www.dassh.ac.uk/dasshmapper

The Ocean Census Network just launched its Expedition Awards - up to $7,000 funding for scientists & community members to join marine species discovery expeditions! 🐠🔬 Match funding may apply. Apply by June 18, 2025, 17:00 BST. Details & apply: oceancensus.org/expedition-a...

🌍 Team Travels: Where's DASSH Been Recently❓👀 Last week, Dan Lear chaired a session at the One Ocean Science Congress during the 3rd UN Ocean Conference in Nice, showcasing GOOS and OBIS. Over 2,000 experts came together to drive key ocean stewardship goals.

🌊 The #DTOBioFlow #SecondOpenCall winners are here! 🎉 10 projects selected from 61 will receive up to €60K to support #MarineBiodiversity data integration into the #EUDTO. 🏁 Workshop kicks off today in #Paris! 🔗 Meet the winners: tinyurl.com/3suw9fum 🚀 Not selected? Follow us for more!