Cuttlefish art highlights the danger of marine litter

Environmental students from Whyalla Stuart High School, the Whyalla Men’s Shed and the Natural Resources Eyre Peninsula Marine Debris team collaborated on the project, which aims to raise awareness about litter polluting our oceans and endangering marine wildlife.

The installation was made entirely from thongs which washed up along the Eyre Peninsula coast in recent years.

Upper Spencer Gulf’s most iconic species, the Giant Australian Cuttlefish (Sepia apama) is just one of the amazing marine animals the students wanted to highlight.

Natural Resources Eyre Peninsula Coast and Marine Officer, Kate Brocklehurst said Giant Australian Cuttlefish are a popular animal in the region.

“It was an obvious choice to use the Giant Cuttlefish as the flagship species to highlight the dangers of litter in our oceans,” Ms Brocklehurst said.

“Cuttlefish are currently protected in the Northern Spencer Gulf, they’re not allowed to be caught north of the line between Arno Bay and Wallaroo, and must be put back if accidentally caught.”

People also need to be aware of the restrictions in the Black Point Sanctuary Zone within the Upper Spencer Gulf Marine Park, which is a key spawning location for the cuttlefish.

Marine Debris team volunteer Jamie Matsen, age 17, said

“The amount of rubbish that we pick up when we do marine surveys is really bad, so it’s good to see that some of the litter is being put to good use and send a really strong message to the community that we need to look after our marine environment.”

For more information contact Kate Brocklehurst on 0488 000 481.