Maya Plass Becomes MARINElife Patron

DORSET, ENGLAND, November 06, 2012 (Press-News.org) Marine biologist, presenter and author Maya Plass announced she has become a Patron for the Dorset-based charity MARINElife who conduct research and monitoring projects for whales, dolphins, seabirds and other marine wildlife around the UK.

Maya Plass will be known to many from her work for the BBC on Spring and Autumn Watch and Coast and has a passion for engaging the public, particularly children about aquatic wildlife.

She is based in the south-west and founded the Learn to Sea initiative which aims to engage children with the coastline and river systems in the South West. Her new book, The RSPB Handbook of the Seashore is to be published in May 2013.

Maya commented, "MARINElife and its volunteers have an incredibly important role to play in the protection of our invaluable coast and seas. Their work helps to raise awareness of an aspect of our seas that few people appreciate - we have a fantastic selection of whales, dolphins and seabirds in our waters and some people might assume you have to travel abroad to see them! I am thrilled to become the patron for MARINElife and continue to raise awareness about their fantastic work and our stunning seas".

MARINElife is a young charity established to fill a knowledge gap by providing scientific data to help underpin conservation efforts for animals living far out at sea. MARINElife is supported in its research by commercial ferry companies operating around the UK. Each month of the year teams of MARINElife volunteers undertake surveys along 14 ferry routes, counting animals across nearly 5000km of ocean - a distance equivalent to travelling from London to Istanbul. The charity also conducts extensive research on threatened dolphins and seabirds from a wider variety of vessels in both South West England and the North East and encourages the public to get directly involved.

Dr Tom Brereton, Research Director of the charity MARINElife commented, "We are delighted to receive Maya's support for our work, her views and support for the marine environment are closely aligned with those of MARINElife and we are very excited about how we can work together in the coming months, to ensure that our scientific data is put to maximum use for marine conservation".

Maya's passion for marine issues and support will be critical in helping MARINElife grow and further engage with the public about the importance of understanding more about what can be found just beyond sight of land.

For more information please contact:
Andrew McLeish, Development Manager MARINElife
T: +447974 923608 E: Andrew.mcleish@marine-life.org.uk

Dr Tom Brereton, Research Director, MARINElife
T: +447816 786 173 E: tom.brereton@marine-life.org.uk


Editors' notes:

Maya Plass

Maya Plass is a marine biologist and qualified diver with a passion for engaging the public with the wonders of the UK coastline. She set up the Learn to Sea initiative in order to share her love of the sea. Maya is based in Devon and her work with Learn to Sea has been featured in BBC Spring Watch and she has been a guest presenter on Autumn Watch. Further information on Maya Plass can be found by visiting mayaplass.com

MARINElife

MARINElife is a charity, established to co-ordinate and develop whale, dolphin and seabird research and monitoring projects, chiefly in European Waters. Focal areas of work include whale, dolphin and seabird monitoring from ferries and other 'ships of opportunity', and research on Balearic Shearwaters, Bottlenose Dolphins and White-beaked Dolphins. Through these projects and collaborations, we aim to further the conservation of the wildlife of oceans and coasts through scientific investigation and educational activities.

MARINElife continues to work in partnership with a number of other research groups, spearheading an international initiative, the Atlantic Research Coalition (ARC) that aims to describe changes in the status of whales and dolphins at a European scale. Further information on MARINElife can be found by visiting marine-life.org.uk.