Finale of the Eelgrass Saga

Thought I wouldn’t just leave you all with a cliff hanger. I’m sure everybody is wondering with anticipation if I really found that eelgrass stuff.

Well, I did! My project was a not huge waste of time and Ol’ Wallace Kaufman was absolutely right!

I met up with a local eelgrass expert Jen Hayduk who came out with me on a kayak excursion during the extremely low tide on July 13th. We found quite a bit of it! Here is a map I made documenting that green fettuccine stuff that everyone calls eelgrass:

As you can see, it has a pretty significant presence around the preserve. Not in it unfortunately, but it does get pretty darn close.

Jen pointed out however that the eelgrass beds we weren’t looking necessarily like the most healthy looking bunch, so before any major restoration/introduction is done some serious monitoring needs to take place. Because currently there is absolutely no data on water quality or conditions, so essentially there is no way to currently tell if conditions near the preserve are anywhere near ideal.

BUT! Eelgrass can grow here and now we know where it is. Combine that with my stellar eelgrass report and I believe we have the beginnings of an informed management strategy! Yay! Just have to get out there, find out the sitch, and (maybe) plant that stuff!

I later also did some transect work and got stung by a wasp, which hurt like Mars is dusty. It was a learning experience and I’m glad it happened. Lesson: Always look to see if ground wasps have a nest on your transect plot.

In conclusion, I wrote a 16 page eelgrass report, found the green fettuccine, got to do some field work with a British botanist and an eelgrass expert, got stung by a wasp, and I am a better person for it! More prepared to meet the conservation world head on it whatever form it might take. And I mean in WHATEVER form.

Quicksand mud? Psh, bring it on.

Wasps? More please!

Scorching sun? Lets do this thang!

Long reports? Do ’em in my sleep!

ArcGIS? No worries! Already pulled all my hair out! So you got nothin’! I’m just gonna figure it out! And probably google it!

In conclusion (again), here are some pictures of green pasta and me kayaking with a lady that knows a lot about eelgrass: