© Henry Göhlich
SEA LIGHTS
With curiosity and courage: young people explore the hidden underwater world outside the city of Kiel
The ‘Snorkeling.City’ initiative not only offers a jump into cold water, but also the chance to discover an unknown world and overcome one`s own limits.
"Wonderful! It's simply wonderful!" This summer morning, I strike up a conversation with the woman who is swimming next to me. She laughs and takes another lap. Today is an extraordinary day for me. I have been invited by the ‘Schnorchel.City’ initiative. Before a group of young people from Kiel learn to snorkel and discover the underwater world for themselves, course leader Henry Göhlich welcomes me to the Sea Bar. 'We'll start by collecting animals,” he routinely announces. I swim next to the pier in my wetsuit and try to navigate behind Henry. Below me, the view of the seabed opens up and crabs threateningly cross my path. Henry has quickly caught a few different specimens and maneuvered them into the mobile aquarium on the pier. Laughing, the swimmer climbs out of the water and examines the contents of the aquarium.
“The special guests round to the right.”
Shortly before 9 a.m., a lively group of students is standing in front of the large white gate with ‘Seebad Düsternbrook’ written in yellow letters above it. Henry collects the youngsters from the entrance and says: “Regulars round to the left.” He waves the swimmers round the bend and then addresses the group of schoolchildren:
“And the special guests to the right.” The pier is already frequented by many swimmers in the morning, who seem to be delighted with the young people and the educational program. One swimmer asks whether the offer will also be available during the holidays, as it would be interesting for his grandchildren.
Arriving on the seaside pier, Henry welcomes the teenagers and tells them that they are the last class of the season to take part in the snorkelling workshop. On this day, a television crew from NDR is also present, filming for a report on the promotion of the BINGO! - environmental lottery for ‘Snorkeling City’. Henry describes the workshop program. The young people will learn the theory and practice of snorkelling and explore the underwater world off Kiel's Kiellinie with its typical plants and animals.
Experience has shown, that participants are often exhausted afterwards, which is why not much happens after the water. “It's no problem at all to have a queasy feeling and respect for the new medium, the sea, because we are land animals,” reassures the course leader. “We know a lot about the oceans, but in order to realise what treasures lie below the surface of the Baltic Sea, we have to dive in.” You can see the youngsters' curiosity.
For one group, the workshop begins with theory. "The Baltic Sea is a special sea. It`s very young, only 12,000 years old. Today it is comparatively fresh and consists of brackish water." Henry uses a diagram to illustrate the salt content, which continues to decrease towards the east. A pupil asks whether there is no more salt in the far north. "Yes, there's still some salt in there. Guess how many grams of salt there are in one litre of Baltic Sea water here in the Kiel Fjord." The estimates come flying in: 100 grams, 80 grams, 20 grams. “About 15 grams per litre,” he takes out a petri dish with salt. “In the North Sea it's much more, 35 grams.” The pupils are keen to taste it. The team mixes it with tap water and stirs vigorously. The participants get a few drops to try on the back of their hands. The first ones grimace: “Oh, it tastes so awful.” “Eww!”, while one participant wants more: “I actually like it.” “Due to the late hour, we won't taste the North Sea salt content today, please try that with your parents."
“Look, other small algae are also growing on it. These are moss animals, they feel a bit like sandpaper and have little arms. Have a look at that under the microscope back there.“
Henry Göhlich
The group inspects the plants and animals that they will likely see while snorkelling. First an algae, the bladder wrack. “What's so special about it?’ asks the instructor. One student knows: "It's in the water. That's how it gets the sunlight." "Right, like in the garden. For photosynthesis. This gives the algae an advantage, it can spread upward and thus gets more light." A pupil points to a shrimp. Henry says that this shows another important characteristic of algae, because it is also a habitat for others. "Look, other small algae are also growing on it. These are moss animals, they feel a bit like sandpaper and have little arms. Have a look at that under the microscope back there," and points to the microscopes at the side. “So the algae is like a kind of 3D structure, like a tree that you can sit on.” “When does it die?” asks a student. "Sometimes they are torn down, for example after storms, or they die when the temperature gets too cold or there is too little light, in winter, yes, but that's a good question. These algae here come back into the water afterwards and continue to live there." Henry describes the three large groups of algae, green algae (need a lot of light), red algae (occur where there is little light) and brown algae, and shows examples of each. He also shows examples of seaweed, whose ancestors lived on land and conquered the sea in the course of evolution.
“And who can get the crab out of the water?” Student David skilfully grasps it with two fingers from above and below and lifts it up. “It's a male,” explains Henry. "On a female, the abdomen would be rounder and wider because the eggs are underneath. There's a predetermined breaking point at the back of the shell because the crab will eventually shed it. Like a snake that sheds its skin when it gets bigger. During this time, the crab hides in the seagrass." Henry shows the seagrass meadow around the Sea Bar on a map.
“You can see if you can spot harbour porpoises,” Amelie points outwards through a window in the white wooden wall, “would be a sweet sighting.”
“Does eutrophication ring a bell?” asks team member Amelie Muntschick on the pier. “Yes, I drew that once, the cycle, or was it a process?” one pupil asks the next. The second group is in the middle of an introduction to the equipment provided by BUND Umwelthaus in Neustadt, followed by a material hand-out. “You can see if you can spot harbour porpoises,” Amelie points outwards through a window in the white wooden wall, “would be a sweet sighting.” Amelie gives a technical briefing suitable for young people. "With the suits, you can float like a sea otter. And about the masks: we all have different face and head shapes, the sealing lip of the mask has to fit snugly. Sometimes hair and eyebrows make it difficult to see and water can get in." The students should split into teams of two. “The buddy checks the mask,” instructs Amelie. “I once went snorkelling and had to really concentrate on only breathing with my mouth,” says one student.
Can anything actually happen while snorkelling? “Not much, but enough to push some participants to their limits”, explains Henry. Fear of jellyfish, concerns about the waves, an unfamiliar situation, but most of the young people face up to their limits and then surpass themselves a little by taking part in the snorkelling workshop. A great side effect of the short course!
And then they go into the water and dive.
This year's ‘Snorkeling.City’ initiative is being made possible by the Pro Ocean association and funding from the BINGO! Environmental Lottery. The snorkelling equipment is provided by BUND-Umwelthaus in Neustadt, BUND SH and Tourismusagentur Lübecker Bucht. Dr Henry Göhlich, marine biologist at GEOMAR, has taken on the coordination and project management on a voluntary basis, supported by a large number of regional partners such as the Ocean Summit team, the Heinrich Böll Foundation SH, Kiel Marketing, the Arbeiter-Samariter-Bund SH and diving instructor Kjell Wassermann.
Dr Jana Koerth
... is a marine conservation officer at the state capital of Kiel. She is particularly interested in the diverse interactions between the sea and humans. Here she shows moments of these interactions.
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© Dr. Jana Koerth
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