This month, FIMRO’s Education Officer David spent an afternoon with the Fair Isle Primary School, who were learning all about mermaid’s purses and how to identify them.

The session began with an identification workshop in the classroom, where the pupils learned about the distinctive features of different egg cases using the Shark Trust identification guide. Equipped with this knowledge, they then headed to the beach, braving the rain to see what they could find.

Their efforts were rewarded after a diligent search when they discovered two mermaid’s purses. Using the skills they had learned earlier, they were both successfully identified as spotted ray egg cases before reporting their findings directly to the Shark Trust website.

The Shark Trust collects records of mermaid’s purses—the collective name for the egg cases of sharks, skates and rays—to help build a better understanding of the distribution and abundance of these species around the UK. Every record submitted contributes valuable information to marine conservation and research.

For more information visit the Shark Trust’s website:

https://www.sharktrust.org/greateggcasehunt

Amazing citizen science in action by the Fair Isle Primary School!

Jonathan Pye (Fair Isle Primary School)

This year’s FIMRO Education Officer project is generously supported by funds from the Highlands and Islands Environment Foundation and will run until October 2026.