On this section of the website can be found a summary of the history of Lundy’s MPA, set out as important designations in chronological order. Many of these designations (indicated by ) were the first of their kind in Great Britain, leading the way for others to follow.
The discovery of Lundy by sport divers
1960s
SCUBA (Self-Contained Underwater Breathing Apparatus) diving was in its infancy during the late 1950s and 1960s. The British Sub-Aqua Club (BS-AC) had been established in 1953 by a handful of enthusiasts seeking 'unrestricted' adventure in exploring under water. Wetsuits had to be self-made, with cut-out pieces of neoprene rubber stuck together with glue. The Ilfracombe and North Devon Sub-Aqua Club was one of the first BS-AC clubs in the country, formed in 1960. Lundy, tempting to such adventurers for the chance to explore its many shipwrecks in particular, was always there - an enticing prospect on the horizon.
In the wake of this growing interest in sports diving, Don Shiers (who ran his own commercial diving company which worked on building the Thames Barrier amongst other jobs) set up a diving operation on Lundy (Bristol Channel Divers) in the late 1960s, in agreement with the then owner of the island Albion Harman. Don was particularly interested in wreck salvage (Bristol Channel Divers Ltd. still own the salvage rights top several of the island's wrecks) and in developing a sport diving holiday base. The facilities he built (on what became known as ‘Diver’s Beach’ below the South Light) included a dive compressor, allowing divers to fill their tanks with compressed air, thereby increasing the number of dives they could undertake and thus lengthening their stay on the island.
Those more interested in what the underwater wildlife was like, soon discovered an amazing diversity and richness of species when compared to sites close to the mainland coast. Surveys of the island’s seaweeds by members of North-East London Polytechnic in 1969 and 1970 revealed the algal flora to be richer than any other similar sized location in the British Isles [over 320 species have now been recorded from the MPA]. Also in 1969, during his first dive at Lundy, Keith Hiscock discovered an unfamiliar bright yellow and orange cup coral at the Knoll Pins. It took him a year to find out what it was: a species of Mediterranean origin known as Leptopsammia pruvoti, which now has the common name of the sunset cup coral.
Unfortunately, the appeal of collecting ‘souvenir species’ by some divers (such as common sea urchins and pink sea fans), led to concern from conservationists that what was special about Lundy's marine might soon be lost. Plans were initiated to see if the waters around the island could be protected in some way.
