Under the See: Dugong

‘Tangled’ a Journey into plastic pollution. Group exhibition and collaboration with artists and marine conservation projects in Thailand. Organised by Love Wildlife and Environmental Justice Foundation

2022.02.11 – 2022.02.27

Bangkok Arts and Cultural Centre (bacc) Bangkok

About the dugong (พะยูน)

The Dugong is sea mammal that lives in coastal tropical waters. They can live up to 70 years, and their closest living relative is the actually elephant. These shy, gentle creatures are thought to be the source of the mermaid myths in many cultures. Dugongs do not survive n captivity so we still have a lot to learn about them.

Dugongs are also known as ‘Sea Cows’ because they eat only seagrass which is a family of around 30 species of plants. Seagrass needs sunlight and grows in marine water that is less than 10m deep. Because of this, it is most often located close to land and is heavily impacted by pollution. Most marine pollution is washed off the land into rivers and eventually into the sea. Chemical run off can disturb this delicate ecosystem directly or can cause algae can overgrow and prevent sunlight reaching the seagrass beds. It is estimated 5.8 tonnes of topsoil is being lost per acre of farmed land per year, and this eventually is washed into the ocean where it can stop sunlight reaching the seagrass. Lastly, trash of all kinds washes into the sea, 80% of which is plastic that comes from the land.

We do know Dugongs reproduce very slowly, and calves are born after 12 – 15 months of pregnancy. After giving birth the mother pushes baby to the surface to take their first breath. Young stay with their mothers for at least 8 years and want to be in constant contact, often reaching out to touch her with a flipper. Young dugongs will take milk from their mother for around a year and a half, but they will stay together only leaving their mother at sexual maturity (between 7 – 14 years) to find a mate.

The total global dugong population is estimated at 35,000, and they are classified as Vulnerable (VU) on the IUCN Red List. The main risks are seagrass habitat destruction, hunting and fishing related deaths.

About the installation

‘Under the See’ is a series of installations that invites the audience to look more closely at how we are connected to the world under the ocean waves.

Dugongs share our home planet but live in an ecosystem that few humans can access. 71% of the Earth is covered in water and most of us do not get to experience what life might be like under the sea.

The installation places the viewer on the ocean floor, with waves rippling above our heads. Light filters down through discarded fishing nets. As the viewer moves, light catches a shape and gradually we see a dugong mother and baby. The full scene is mostly only visible if the viewer moves, and the more you look the more you see barely visible nets all around the animals.

On one level the installation is literal: The mother is the size of an average female, around 3 meters and the baby the size of a new born calf, 1.2 meters. When we encounter large animals face to face we are often awed by their sheer size in comparison to us. The experience of being in physical relationship with the animal and can provoke feelings that do not arise when watching through a screen. Some of us are so used to accessing information on a screen that we can remain utterly detached from the subject we view. This installation is a way for us to step into the world of the dugong and connect to them.

The nets literally show us how hard these materials are to see, how well they perform their function of catching live animals and how strong they are. Whilst building this piece I often got caught in the nets. The slightest contact or brush past was all that was needed to become entangled. I saw many visitors become caught also, both those who had not seen there were nets there, as well as those who knew. I saw many visitors become caught also, both those who had not seen there were nets there, as well as those who knew. To work free of them took time and patience, and I could easily imagine how frightening it must be as an animal without fingers and thumbs to realise you have no way to escape.

Human to dugong connections

One way humans and dugongs are directly connected is by what we eat. We use different types of nets to catch various sea animals, and most of these nets are now made from plastic. The fine nets you see in this installation are used to catch crabs and shrimp, and although they look thin they are very strong and difficult to break with bare hands. These type of nets can easily become tangled on rocks and other things underwater. In this situation the communities who use them have to weigh the risk of diving underwater to try to free them or cutting them loose. It is easy to get snagged so diving underwater to free nets is dangerous but can save the net. Cutting the net free can leave part of the net behind and requires them to then spend time to repair the net. The income from fishing, the cost of replacing or repairing the net, plus the risk to life all have to be considered.

This net represents the many threads that weave together our lives with the dugong. It is not as simple as it might seem at first glance. As much as we need to understand and protect the animals in any situation, we also need to understand the humans and the systems that act upon them also.

in place that also impact them.

Another way our food is directly connected is because most of our food supply now uses plastic packaging. These plastic items are integral parts of the current food supply chain, prolonging shelf life as well as making items convenient to transport, sell and market. Sadly most food packaging is single use, made with mixed materials which are very difficult and/or expensive to recycle. As a result we throw these items away and consider them worthless. Very little is recycled or disposed of safely, and ends up in rivers and washed into the sea.

The Dugongs only food source is seagrass and found in shallow tropical waters. Seagrass is similar to the grass we see on land, and plastic waste of all kinds is easily caught in the seagrass beds. When dugongs come to feed they eat plastics along with the seagrass and once inside the digestive system plastics cause several types of damage. It can inflict direct physical trauma, disrupt hormones which are the messengers of our bodily processes and create disease, slowly but eventually killing the animal.

Discarded nets in seagrass beds can do the same if eaten and large sections can trap and drown animals.

Photo by Sirachai Shin Arunrugstichai for the story behind this shot please watch Shin talk about it (from 19 mins in)

For Marium

This piece is dedicated to Marium, a baby dugong who was found alone in Thailand. She quickly captured our hearts as we followed her story. Sadly, Marium died in a few months, the autopsy found plastic in her digestive system.

With thanks to Pardicolor

This work was made possible with the kind support of Pardicolor creative arts fund! See work from artists across the globe who are bringing attention to critical issues faced by wildlife and their habitats.

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