SCCF Marine Lab hosts visiting seagrass researchers

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SANIBEL-CAPTIVA CONSERVATION FOUNDATION

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SANIBEL-CAPTIVA CONSERVATION FOUNDATION Seagrass collected in the Pine Island Sound was transported to the Mote Marine Laboratory's Summerland Key lab facility for propagation.

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SANIBEL-CAPTIVA CONSERVATION FOUNDATION Turtle grass and shoal grass will be studied to increase restoration success.

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New research to propagate seagrass for statewide restoration projects brought a team of researchers from the University of Wisconsin-Madison (UW) to the Sanibel-Captiva Conservation Foundation’s (SCCF) Marine Lab on Aug. 11-12.

The SCCF reported that widespread losses of seagrass have been observed throughout Florida over the past decade. Some of the decline is attributed to algae blooms and large disturbances, such as hurricanes and flooding events. Other, more direct losses are from propeller scarring in shallow water.

The UW team included Assistant Professor Dr. Robert Johnson from the Department of Integrated Biology, along with his Ph.D. Student and an undergraduate student. They were assisted by the SCCF’s Sanibel Sea School summer intern Frankie Just.

The Marine Lab collaborated to collect seagrass to propagate at the Mote Marine Laboratory facility in the Florida Keys. The team will try new techniques to successfully propagate seagrass for future restoration projects.