It’s a Nudi Festival, but all in the name of science

Scuba divers and nature lovers from across the country are being invited to take part in the Nelson Bay Nudi Festival within the Port Stephens-Great Lakes Marine Park on December 13 and 14, and it’s all in the name of science.

The Nudi Festival is a collaborative citizen science project, aimed at celebrating the diversity and amazing body-forms of colourful nudibranch (noo-dee-brank) molluscs, more commonly known as sea slugs. The shell-less, soft bodied molluscs live on seabeds and are particularly abundant in shallow waters.

Festival co-organiser Associate Professor Steve Smith, from Southern Cross University’s National Marine Science Centre, said the weekend would be a celebration of these vibrant sea creatures, and an opportunity to collect new scientific data through the 5th Sea Slug Census.

“Nelson Bay is world renowned for the diversity of marine life at dive sites, and colourful nudibranchs are particularly abundant,” Professor Smith said.

“Divers travel from all over Australia and overseas to see and photograph them, so it’s a real opportunity to tap into this interest and gather some critical data at the same time.”

Professor Smith said the University and the NSW Department of Primary Industries had been conducting a Sea Slug Census Program with the Combined Hunter Underwater Group since December last year.

“The Nudi Festival will celebrate the first anniversary of that program, providing an opportunity to share information that we have discovered so far, and gather more data.

“In our last census we found three species that we hadn’t seen before. We also found two introduced species of sea slugs that had extended their southern range on Australia’s east coast. Sea slugs have got very rapid life cycles and they can respond quickly to changing environments so they have great potential as indicators of environmental health.”

As part of the festival, Australia’s foremost nudibranch expert Dr Richard Willan, Senior Curator of Molluscs at the Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory, will be speaking and available to identify unusual animals discovered over the weekend.

Local schools are also being encouraged to participate by creating pictures of nudibranchs, which will be displayed during the two-day event. A marine environment display comprising touch tanks and static displays will be set up at the D’Albora Marina on both days of the event.

Divers participating in the festival will be in the running for the title of best nudi spotter, most unusual nudi spotted and for the best nudi photo.

For information email seaslugcensus@gmail.com

Photo: The purple-lined Nembrotha (Nembrotha purpureolineata) (Credit: David Harasti, NSW Department of Primary Industries)