High school students analyze the evolution of the marine ecosystem at the Port of Palma

Fourth-year ESO students from Colegio Santa Magdalena Sofía visit Marina Port de Mallorca and Marina Palma Cuarentena to install "traps" they have previously manufactured to analyze the evolution of the marine ecosystem that adheres to these.

Subsequently, they attended a lecture at Marina Port de Mallorca delivered by Palma Aquarium, about the marine species that inhabit the Mediterranean Sea and the challenges each species currently faces.

Marina Port de Mallorca and Marina Palma Cuarentena hosted eighteen fourth-year ESO students from Colegio Santa Magdalena Sofía to install some "traps" they had previously made in their biology class, which will help them analyze the evolution of the marine ecosystem that forms in the waters of the Port of Palma.

The fourth-year ESO students submerged numerous "traps" at various strategic points in both marinas to monitor the evolution of the marine ecosystem that adheres to these throughout the school year and finally collect the samples and analyze them in the laboratory, applying the knowledge gained in their biology studies.

After completing their task of installing "traps," the students were visited at Marina Port de Mallorca by Lluc from the Palma Aquarium Foundation, who gave an interesting talk about the problems facing the different species that inhabit the Mediterranean Sea and how the foundation works with these species to recover them and subsequently return them to their habitat.

During the talk, the students learned about the most common species of cetaceans, turtles, and sharks in the Mediterranean Sea, and the challenges each species faces.

In the case of turtles, there are three species that inhabit the Balearic Sea: the loggerhead turtle, the green turtle, and the leatherback turtle. Their main threats are ghost nets drifting at sea, in which the turtles get caught by their limbs, causing them serious injuries and even death, as well as the plastics they ingest, mistaking them for food.

During the talk, the students learned what to do if they find an injured turtle and how to handle it properly to avoid causing further damage. Steps such as calling 112, protecting it from the sun, covering it with a wet towel without covering its head, not untangling it if it is wrapped in nets or plastics, to prevent the spread of infection, and never turning it over. These simple steps can be of great help for its survival.

For years, Marina Port de Mallorca has had a special box available at the reception for clients or users of the port, so that if they find an injured turtle while sailing, it can be placed in this box at the marina to activate the aid protocol of the Palma Aquarium Foundation.

They also learned about the importance of protecting Posidonia for many reasons, first because it is the lung of the Mediterranean, supplying oxygen and absorbing a large part of the CO2 generated by humans, as well as protecting the beaches and being the habitat of numerous species.

This collaboration of Marina Port de Mallorca and Marina Palma Cuarentena with Colegio Santa Magdalena Sofía is part of the effort to spread awareness among young people to contribute to a society more respectful of the environment and the marine environment that contributes so much to these islands and the importance of caring for it to continue enjoying the sea that we value so much.