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Tag: Sarasota Bay Estuary

Eyes on seagrass

Eyes on seagrass

Written by Rusty Chinnis on . Posted in Outdoors, Reel Time.

Readers of this column know the importance of seagrass to the health of the region’s bays, estuaries, fisheries, fauna and economy. These critical meadows are under threat from overdevelopment, stormwater run-off, sewage releases, motor prop scarring and what I often refer to as death by a thousand cuts. This July, citizens and visitors alike can learn about, see firsthand and help scientists quantify this critical resource during the Sarasota Bay Estuary’s Eyes on Seagrass program.

The Eyes on Seagrass program is a bi-annual citizen science event held in partnership with Florida Sea Grant, Mote Marine Laboratory and Sarasota and Manatee counties to measure macroalgae and seagrass coverage. The program was expanded from Charlotte Harbor to cover Sarasota Bay in 2021 in response to a data gap in macroalgae monitoring. During this sampling window in April and July, participants explore various locations throughout Sarasota Bay to collect information on macroalgae and seagrass coverage. Results are then integrated into the Sarasota Bay Ecosystem Health Report Card.

Want to participate? Organize a team with a boat and register your team at https://sarasotabay.org/eos/. You can pick your site preference and in-person training date (for new volunteers) during registration. Organizers will then email you which site(s) you have.

Participants can pick up their sampling gear starting Monday, July 1 at the Sarasota Bay Estuary Program’s office in Sarasota at 111 S. Orange Ave. Suite 200 W.

You can then attend an in-person training (for new volunteers), and/or read the sampling instructions and watch a video to learn how to sample and record your data. Training sessions will be held at the following locations and times, on Tuesday, June 25 at 9 a.m. at Bayfront Park in downtown Sarasota (5 Bayfront Drive) and on Wednesday, June 26 at 9 a.m. at Bayshore Gardens Park and Recreational District (6919 26th St. W., Bradenton). If you are unable to attend a scheduled training, please email christine@sarasotabay.org to coordinate an additional training session. Site sampling takes place from July 6-21.

This is an excellent opportunity to get in the water and see the amazingly rich ecosystem that lies just under the water’s surface. You’ll come away with a new appreciation of the beauty and complexity of our marine world, meet like-minded citizen scientists and make a difference. See you there.

Reel Time: Celebrate the bay

Reel Time: Celebrate the bay

Written by Rusty Chinnis on . Posted in Outdoors, Reel Time.

The communities that line Sarasota Bay are fortunate to have an active National Estuary Program centered right here in Manatee and Sarasota counties.

First named in the newly-minted Water Quality Act of 1987, the Sarasota Bay National Estuary Program (SBEP) officially began in June 1989 as one of 28 estuaries in the United States that were named by the U.S. Congress as “estuaries of national significance.”

The SBEP is celebrating National Estuaries Week 2022 from Sept. 17-24. During the month of September, the public is welcome and encouraged to attend various events and opportunities to experience and learn more about the area’s critical local bays and waterways!

National Estuaries Week is celebrated every year to showcase the value of bays and estuaries in providing for local communities. An estuary is defined as an area where freshwater and saltwater meet. On the Gulf coast of Florida, estuaries provide habitat for over 70% of key recreational and commercial fish species including snook, redfish, snapper, grouper and mullet. Estuaries also support a host of birds, dolphins and manatees. They are the main driver of the local economy, elevating property values and underpinning local economies. Habitats like mangroves and seagrasses help reduce erosion and storm damage, and add to the overall quality of life here in Florida.

Here are a few of the activities the public can enjoy as they experience and learn about the Sarasota Bay Estuary.

Join SBEP and Oscar Scherer State Park on Wednesday, Sept. 14 from 5:30-7:30 p.m. Enjoy a free guided hike to Big Lake and learn about the efforts that go into protecting, restoring, creating and maintaining habitat for water quality and wildlife.

Check out Vertical Oyster Gardens (VOGs) on Tuesday, Sept. 20 from 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at Bayfront Park in Sarasota. VOGs are oyster shells strung with lengths of rope that hang below docks. VOGs help add more habitat to our bays for sessile organisms – oysters, sea squirts and other marine organisms that grow attached to surfaces.

These VOGs have become more important as most shorelines in the greater Sarasota Bay area are “armored,” meaning that they have been engineered with seawalls, bulkheads, and riprap. This armoring reduces the habitat that is available for marine life. While oysters might settle on older concrete seawalls and wooden pilings, vinyl and other newer construction materials and coatings can prevent oysters and other sessile organisms from settling. These materials might extend the life of the seawall, but they severely reduce the amount of habitat available to oysters.

You have the opportunity at this event to learn about and build your own VOGs. Efforts by citizens help create habitat and contribute to our understanding of oyster distribution in Sarasota and Tampa bays.

These are just a few of the opportunities. For a full list and to sign up, visit the Sarasota Bay National Estuaries Week page.