Robert A. Hinde

Lyme Bay, in the south-west of the country. The marine environment here represents one of the most diverse and species-rich around the country, and the measures are planned to stop damage to coral reefs by scallop dredging within the bay. While the dredgers are clearly unhappy, others hope the move will mark economic benefits for other users of these waters and fishermen outside the zone. And Britain’s marine environment may receive another benefit: the Challenged: Predators appear to reduce the numbers of crown-of-thorns starfish maturing in reef areas where fishing does not occur. (Photo: Horizon International Images Limited/Alamy.)