Last updated: September 2024

Introduction 

Organising the event setting up the tank and providing the creatures is a difficult, time-consuming and challenging process requiring skilled individuals. Proper planning will be necessary to ensure that the event runs smoothly. Experienced and capable individuals will be needed as they will be able to make the correct decisions about safety and animal welfare. It’s impossible to produce comprehensive guidelines to cover every species & every scenario, so this document aims to highlight the main issues. It’s important to emphasise that these guidelines are not just a tick-box exercise; they are to ensure common mistakes are not repeated. 

1. CREATURE CARE 

Species must be selected based on their ability to tolerate a range of temperatures & oxygen levels. Those found in small rockpools on the upper beach and under exposed rocks are used to far harsher conditions than in a well-run tank so the most common welfare issue is excessive handling. Placing lots of creatures in the tank is not the solution as it’s not possible to keep track of how many times each one gets picked up and the ones which are most exhausted are the easiest to catch. Problems can be avoided by limiting public access, by placing some in rest containers at the back of the tank or by periodically changing the creatures for a completely new batch. Large Events require very careful planning & strict enforcement of numbers attending the tank. Species are selected which will be fine without food for the duration of a day-long event. However many are in a predator prey relationship. Predation is not a welfare issue as where possible, creatures should be allowed to display natural behaviour when in captivity. The desire to feed is an indication of low-stress levels. However, losses are not ideal when the prey was intended for display not, for food. Larger predators like crabs & fish should be offered food before an event to minimise losses. 

2. Collection of Creatures  

It is recommended that creatures are not collected more than 2 days before the event. But acclimatization may be beneficial particularly for fish species, to adapt and become accustomed to living in an aquarium environment before going on public display. The creatures should be selected by competent individuals on their ability to withstand the type of environment they will be subjected to. For longer events, an appropriate number of changes of animals will be required.   

Creatures found under dry rocks are often squeezed into a small space with other large, aggressive species like crabs. Life under a rock or in a rock pool is not easy as many bigger creatures are both predators and aggressively defensive over food and territory. These are tough creatures, which a person would have to go out of their way to harm in a display tank, but simply laying a lifted rock back down when on the beach after the animals have moved to the back’ hinge’ point will sometimes crush them.  

3. FISH 

Vertebrates are covered by animal welfare regulations so particular care needs to be taken when dealing with fish. Some fish don’t react well to being placed in an open tank with few places to hide. Some will become used to a captive environment when kept as ‘pets’ making them suitable for display but this is an expert area so it’s best to stick to collecting a few well tried & tested species just before an event. 

4. Transportation  of creatures from the inter tidal zone 

Different species are best transported in different ways, some of which may not make sense to the inexperienced. It’s best to avoid less tolerant species which can’t survive out of the water for more than a few minutes and species which require a constant supply of highly oxygenated water. Transport should only be undertaken by those who understand the transport needs of each species. 

5. Preparing the Tanks  

Sufficient space must be allowed to enable the safe movement of visitors and the supervisory team around the tanks. Control of access to the tanks will be required as soon as it is populated to prevent harm to creatures and humans alike. Physical restrictions limiting the number of people who can access the tanks at any time should be used to reduce the risk of overcrowding. No heavy objects are to be placed in the tank that creatures could get underneath and be accidentally injured by. Cooling, filtration, aeration and regular changes of seawater may be required depending on the ambient temperature, the number of animals in the tank, the length of time they will be on display and how many people dip their hands into the tank. Delicate or Sensitive creatures will require a separate tank appropriately out of reach of the visitors. Many species will instinctively try to hide as this how they normally evade predation. They should be given some form of cover so they don’t spend all day running around the tank searching for cover. Hard brown seaweeds like vraic work well as they don’t fragment & make a mess & species can easily be found & extracted to show people. 

6. Supervision 

A ratio of 1 supervisor to 3 visitors will be maintained by controlling the number of visitors around the tanks. This can be achieved by methods such as organised queueing and or restricting the area of the tank exposed to visitors. Supervision must be by experienced capable team members. The attendants must have experience in handling species & identifying signs of stress. This cannot be ‘learned on the job’ without compromising animal welfare so they must have prior experience before working unsupervised. The highest risk to the creatures is the public. Continuously watching & controlling people is hard work. It is critical that supervisors are confident dealing with the public & they need to have regular breaks to avoid lapses of concentration. Each supervisor should have a maximum of 3 people at any time. This can be relaxed when responsible adults are involved but 3 children are more than enough for one person to try and control. Parents should be responsible for controlling them but in reality, it’s usually down to the attendants to enforce the rules.  

7. SAFETY 

Large crabs raise obvious safety issues so they should also be kept in containers. Snakelock anemones will sting if they come into contact with sensitive areas of skin. It’s good to display them but they need to be in separate clear containers. Other anemones will sting anything soft bodied which bumps into them. 

8. Species interactions 

 The creatures won’t have sufficient time to establish territories in the tank, making them less aggressive. Many rock pool species are nocturnal, and finding shelter ranks higher than eating or attacking each other during the day. Just like us humans (as we are animals as well) individual species can display different behaviour within the taxonomic group, so it’s impossible to predict every natural interaction. Indeed, it’s not always food related; Hermit crabs, for example, will fight if one prefers another’s shell. Therefore suitable spare shells should be placed in the tank to minimize conflicts.  

9. Feeding  

Holding animals for periods of study and before display involves feeding them with their natural food sources, including the recreation of a natural ecosystem where predator and prey species co-exist in the same tank. For example, there are prawns in the tank alongside fish, which feed on live prawns. 

10. Human Interactions 

Handling of creatures is only allowed with permission and under the control of experienced team member’s and then only by the supervisor placing the animal on to a visitor’s open palm. Rules are to be implemented depending on the age, maturity and responsibility of the visitor’s. The possibility of allergic reactions is to be made clear. No person suffering from any form of transmissible infection shall be allowed to supervise the tank or visit it. Hands are to be washed before and after visiting the tank using simple ordinary soap. We advise that no fish species should be taken out of the water at any point to ensure those with a protective slime layer are not compromised through improper handling. 

11. Return of Creatures  

Creatures are to be returned to their associated habitats as soon as possible after the event, for most creatures, this should  occur within two hours of the tank being dismantled. 

12. Contributions 

This document includes contributions by Chris Isaacs and Jersey Marine Conservation Touch Tank project.