A new project supporting community-led exploration of Arran’s seas
30 years ago, COAST was born from a community’s recognition of declining fish stocks and degrading marine life. Seabed data and targeted campaigning successfully established the No Take Zone (NTZ) in 2008, followed by the South Arran Marine Protected Area (MPA) in 2014/16.
Research since then demonstrates that these community-led management measures have enabled seabed habitats and marine life to recover.
Over the years COAST has often been asked ‘What about the rest of Arrans Seas?’
Communities and the Sea (CATS) aims to answer that question.
Throughout 2025 CATS has engaged with Arran’s community to-
- Understand and collate Arran’s rich marine heritage
- Build community, provide citizen science training and understand local aspirations
- Explore and record seabed habitats and marine life out with the existing protection
- Share findings to look to the future, together
Explore what has been achieved below, many thanks to all who have helped shaped this journey, let’s see where 2026 takes us!
Your views are vital in driving this community-led project – to contribute and join the project mailing list, please follow the short survey link at the bottom on the page.
Understanding the Past
Understanding the historical and cultural past of island communities and local fisheries provides long-term knowledge that modern data can’t capture.
Collating stories of fish populations or migration patterns, traditional fishing practices reflecting respectful relationships with fish stocks and early conservation practices can help us look to restoring a healthy marine environment once more. CATS aims to connect with islanders to understand Arran’s rich marine heritage.
Special thanks to Fiona Laing from Pirnmill for her research into the once prolific herring fisheries in the Kilbrannan Sound. Hear her talk to COAST’s cofounder Don McNeish on this The Incoming Tide podcast episode.
Thanks also to Simon Ross-Gill for sharing his mum Lynn Gray Ross‘s study ‘Lawrence McBride – Life of an Arran Fisherman’. A historical dive into the life of a Pirnmill fisherman.
Exploring the Present
Throughout 2025 the project ran exploratory seabed habitat surveys of Arran’s shores. This covers 65km of coastline from Corriegills in the east round the North end to Drumadoon Point.
With little known about the seabed in the project area, villagers living on the shoreline were invited on board RV COAST Explorer to learn how to survey and build our knowledge of Arran’s seabed. Thier local knowledge of once abundant fishery zones or recent sightings of towed fishing gear helped identify the survey sites.
The community were trained in citizen science to operate our Remotely Operated Vehicle (ROV), and Drop-Down Video (DDV), marine life ID guides were used to identify and record the habitats and species observed.
Surveys were recorded and analysed in-depth back at COAST HQ, with this seabed data sent to Naturescot for use in decision-making and policy.
To get a closer look at interesting sites indentified, volunteer seasearch SCUBA divers recorded specific species and habitat data.
Explore the map below to see what was found.
Communities and the Sea Interactive Survey Map
33 Community Marine Habitats Surveys and 47 seasearch SCUBA surveys were completed in 2025.
Thanks to the 117 Arran community members and team of volunteer seasearchers, more is now known about Arran’s seabed out with the existing protection.
Take a virtual dive beneath Arrans seas with this interactive google map. Visit each survey point to view photos or raw footage of what lives in our marine environment.
- BLUE ICONS – ROV (Underwater Drone) Survey footage
- GREEN ICONS – DDV (Drop-down Video) Survey footage
- YELLOW ICONS – Seasearch Scuba Survey Photographs
- RED ICONS – Photos and stories from Arrans rich marine heritage.
Do you live on Arran and want to take action for our seas in 2026?
Communities and the Sea (CATS) invites local community to share their views on Arrans seas by completing this short survey to join the project mailing list. This data is vital in driving the direction of the project.
While we know that management measures can help to protect and restore health to our seas, whether or not these approaches are appropriate elsewhere in Arran, is up to the majority view of the community.
As was the case when Howard and Don co-founded COAST 30 years ago, the Communities and the Sea project, is focused on views from the community – what the people who will be most closely impacted by the state of Arran’s inshore waters want to see.
Through this project we want to collaboratively explore views and aspirations for Arran’s coastal waters as a whole, to look to the future, together. We hope you will join us.
Paper copies can be picked up in the COAST discovery centre in Lamlash or follow the link below.
This project is supported by the Scottish Government’s Nature Restoration Fund, managed by Nature Scot & The Challenge Fund by Rewilding Britain.
