From rockpooling to recreational diving: where to spot wild and wonderful sea life this summer

With Sheringham in Norfolk, Hope Gap in Sussex and Saltburn in Yorkshire all named as some of the UK’s best places to go rock pooling this summer by travel experts from holidaycottages.co.uk, these special habitats play host to a whole host of fascinating creatures.

For those planning to go rock pooling this summer, holidaycottages.co.uk has created a timely guide to help beachgoers identify some of the UK’s most common species, including everything from shrimp and goby, velvet swimming crabs and beadlet anemones, through to starfish and dog whelks – and even mermaids purses.

Charli Wilson, Partnerships Manager at the Marine Conservation Society, said, “We’re thrilled to see holidaycottages.co.uk encouraging people to look out for marine life this summer. Rock pooling is a great way to unlock what lies beneath our seas. If you’re on the beach this summer, you can also get involved in marine conservation by joining our beach cleans or reporting jellyfish and turtle sightings to us.”

And while the nation might be hitting the beaches this summer to make the most of the school holidays, many might not realise that just beyond our shores lies a whole other underwater world that is ready for recreational divers and snorkellers to discover. These incredible underwater habitats can be found in some of the stunning Marine Conservation Zones (MCZ) located around the UK’s extensive coastline.

Charli says: “If you’re feeling more adventurous then why not give our snorkelling and diving programme, Seasearch, a go. This summer, we’re urging recreational divers and snorkellers to sign up to our Seasearch project which encourages people to collect data on marine environments around the UK. Seasearch offers an exciting way to learn about marine life while doing your bit to protect and restore our ocean. By collecting information about the habitats, plants and animals that you see underwater, you'll be helping the Marine Conservation Society track the health of our marine environments.”

With 371 Marine Protected Areas making up 38% of the UK’s seas, one of these conservation zones is Norfolk’s Cromer Shoal Chalk Beds; the longest chalk reef in Europe – and possibly the world. Dubbed ‘Britain’s Great Barrier Reef’, it’s over 100 million years old, 20 miles long, and located just 200 metres off the North Norfolk coast.

Another MCZ is Cornwall’s Falmouth & Helford - is home to the largest seagrass bed in the UK. This precious habitat plays an important role in the environment and it’s the contributions from organisations such as holidaycottages.co.uk that help the Marine Conservation Society study and protect these. Not only are there 30 times more creatures living within seagrass meadows compared to nearby sandy habitats such as beaches and dunes, but seagrass also absorbs 10% of the ocean’s carbon annually.

These marine protected areas are the equivalent to the UK’s National Parks found on land and are home to a whole raft of rare and threatened aquatic animals and plants that live in underwater environments such as long snouted seahorses, talked jellyfish, black brittle stars, harbour crabs and so much more. The UK is currently home to six seagrass marine conservation zones; six protected maerl beds and nine kelp forest conservation zones. Extensive chalk reefs and soft mud habitats also play home to thousands of funky organisms such as the parpal dumplin, Tom-pot blenny and Leach’s squat lobster.

Whether looking to explore the maerl beds of Wester Ross, the kelp forests of Pembrokeshire or the chalk reefs and rock pools of Norfolk this summer, holidaycottages.co.uk has put together handy information that highlights where these are located across the country and where to stay nearby in one of the many coastal cottages available this summer. For those interested in recreational snorkelling and diving and are keen to join the Seasearch project, great places to visit include:

Six UK Seagrass Conservation Zones

- Fal & Helford MCZ

- Plymouth Estuaries MCZ

- Torbay MCZ

- Studland Bay MCZ

- Strangford Lough MCZ

- South Arran NCMPA

Six UK Maerl Bed Conservation Zones

- Wester Ross NCMPA

- Loch Sween NCMPA

- South Arran NCMPA

- Red Bay SAC

- Fal & Helford SAC

- Bembridge MCZ

The UK’s Chalk Reef Conservation Zone

- Cromer Shoal Chalk Beds MCZ

Four UK Soft Mud Conservation Zones

- Loch Duich, Long & Alsh NCMPA

- Loch Sunart NCMPA

- Loch Sween NCMPA

- Upper Lochs Fyne & Goll NCMPA

Nine UK Kelp Forest Conservation Zones

- Wester Ross NCMPA

- Abb’s Head to Fast Castle SPA

- Coquet to St Mary’s MCZ

- Menai Strait to Conwy Bay SAC

- Pembrokeshire Marine SAC

- Isles of Scilly Complex SAC

- Torbay MCZ

- Bembridge MCZ

- Beachy Head West MCZ