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Citizen Science Seagrass Monitoring Report 2023
Center for Environmental Diagnostics and Bioremediation
02/16/2024
Abstract
Introduction: The Citizen Science Seagrass monitoring program began in 2017 to engage local citizens and train them in seagrass monitoring as part of an effort to develop a long-term monitoring program of seagrasses in the Pensacola Bay system. Periodic estimates of the extent seagrass beds began in 1974 with Escambia Bay Recovery Report (EPA 1975) and have continued with other aerial photographic surveys (Schwenning et al. 2007, Harvey et al. 2015, Byron et al. 2018). Monitoring of seagrass beds in Gulf Islands National Seashore began 1993 and has continued periodically (Heck and Byron 2014, Byron et al. 2018). The Pensacola and Perdido Bays Estuary Program has expanded on the existing programs in 2023 using aerial, satellite and Tier 2 boat surveys (Darnell et al. 2023)
Many shallow, clear lagoonal systems in the Gulf of Mexico contain extensive seagrass beds. Commercially and recreationally important fish and shellfish species find refuge, food or nursery areas in these beds as do a diverse faunal community including endangered species such as manatees and sea turtles. Biogeochemical cycling such as the fixation of carbon and nutrient transformations provides carbon to higher trophic levels and storage in sediments, the “blue carbon” which is a sink for carbon dioxide. Nutrient removal occurs by direct uptake by plants and burial into sediments. Seagrass can also enhance microbial nutrient removal by the processes of nitrification and denitrification or enhance nutrient inputs by nitrogen fixation.
This year protocols similar to UF “Eyes on Seagrass” were implemented for Big Lagoon and Santa Rosa Sound (https://www.flseagrant.org/citizenscience/eyes-on-seagrass/). Citizens collecting in the urban bayous or Pensacola Bay followed our previous protocols used between 2017 and 2022 (Caffrey et al. 2023). This report describes results from 2023.
Details
- Title
- Citizen Science Seagrass Monitoring Report 2023
- Resource Type
- Report
- Publisher
- Center for Environmental Diagnostics and Bioremediation ; Pensacola, Florida
- Format
- pdf
- Number of pages
- 16
- Copyright
- Permission granted to the University of West Florida Libraries to digitize and/or display this item for non-profit research and educational purposes. Further reproduction in whole or in part is prohibited without written permission from the publisher.
- Identifiers
- 99380505097206600
- Academic Unit
- Biology; Center for Environmental Diagnostics and Bioremediation ; Hal Marcus College of Science and Engineering
- Language
- English