#Seagrass meadows

[bumblebeeappletree]

We thought it was about time to scale up our marine rewilding efforts which is why we have decided to build our very own kelp factory! Together with Seaforester and IPL we are embarking on a journey to build a kelp nursery and test an innovative restoration technique at scale.

🌊 🌱 Learn more about us and the Mossy Earth Membership:

https://mossy.earth/?utm_source=youtu...

🙌 Subscribe to Mossy Earth: https://www.youtube.com/c/MossyEarth?...

💪 OUR PARTNERS

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MARE-IPLeiria https://mare.ipleiria.pt/

SeaForester https://seaforester.org/

START REWILDING OUR PLANET TODAY

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With us, you will restore nature and fight climate change every month

🌲 Plant native trees to capture carbon

🐺 Rewild habitats to support biodiversity

🐉 Support underfunded species and ecosystems

Become a Mossy Earth Member: https://mossy.earth/?utm_source=youtu...

⏱️TIMESTAMPS⏱️

0:00 intro

1:42 Why bring back kelp?

2:02 Kelp distribution and decline

2:51 Restoration trial results

3:50 Green gravel technique

5:07 Starting a bigger experiment

🔎 ABOUT THIS PROJECT

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Since 2020 we have been working with SeaForester to restore kelp forests in Portugal. These underwater forests are astonishing havens for marine life which also improve water quality and sequester carbon. Unfortunately, large areas of kelp have disappeared from the coast of Portugal but reverting this trend has been difficult. One of the challenges is that restoration efforts tend to require extensive diving which quickly becomes costly and time-consuming. A new technique called “green gravel” has been developed to address this challenge and make large scale marine reforestation possible. It involves growing kelp attached to pebbles in a lab before deploying them at suitable locations in the ocean. For this project, we are building a kelp nursery that will allow us to test this method on a larger scale.

➡️ Read all about this project here:

https://mossy.earth/projects/rewildin...

🎥 Kelp videos provided by:

Alvaro Gallego

João Nuno Franco

Jan Verbeek

Inês Louro

📚 Citations List:

de Visser S., Thébault E., de Ruiter P.C.,2012. Ecosystem Engineers, Keystone Species. In: Meyers R.A. (eds) Encyclopedia of Sustainability Science and Technology. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4419-08...

Araújo, R.M., Assis, J., Aguillar, R. et al., 2016. Status, trends and drivers of kelp forests in Europe: an expert assessment. Biodiversity Conservation,25, https://doi.org/10.1007/s10531-016-11...

Fredriksen, S., Filbee-Dexter, K., Norderhaug, K.M. et al.,2020. Green gravel: a novel restoration tool to combat kelp forest decline. Sci Rep 10, 3983. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-020-60...

Eger, A. M., Layton, C., McHugh, T. A, Gleason, M., and Eddy, N.,2022. Kelp Restoration Guidebook: Lessons Learned from Kelp Projects Around the World. The Nature Conservancy, Arlington, VA, USA. https://www.scienceforconservation.or...

Teagle, H., Hawkins, S., Moore, P. and Smale, D., 2017. The role of kelp species as biogenic habitat formers in coastal marine ecosystems. Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology, 492, pp.81-98. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jembe.2017....

Originally posted on YouTube on May 8th, 2022.

#mossy earth #solarpunk #tidalpunk #rewilding #ocean #sea #kelp #kelp forest #seagrass meadows #sea grass #seagrass #seafloor #sea urchin #otters #sea otter #MARE-IPLeiria #SeaForester #marine life #marine ecosystem #ecosystem #Portugal #Youtube

[worldseagrassday]

Act now to protect, restore, and sustainably manage seagrasses.

Seagrass meadows and other blue ecosystems deliver effective nature-based solutions, and it is critical that we act now to protect, restore, and sustainably manage them so they can continue to deliver critical ecosystem services for nature, people and the planet. The UNEP provides global leadership on seagrass ecosystems, promoting international cooperation and science-based and ecosystem-based management approaches, supporting regional and global assessments (see UNEP’s latest report on seagrass), developing best practice manuals, and working with partners to implement conservation and restoration projects on the ground. 

Seagrass protection and restoration is also central to the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration (2021-2030) which seeks to galvanize efforts to restore degraded and destroyed ecosystems to enhance food security, clean our air, secure freshwater supplies, address the climate crisis and protect habitats that support life on Earth. The UN Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development (2021-2030) also highlights seagrass as an ecosystem to inspire advances in science and technology to improve ocean health.  

Facts  

Seagrass meadows provide valuable nursery habitat to over one fifth of the world’s largest 25 fisheries. 

Seagrass meadows cover only 0.1 per cent of the ocean floor, but they are highly efficient carbon sinks and store up to 18 per cent of the world’s oceanic carbon. 

Seagrasses have been declining globally since the 1930s, with the most recent census estimating that 7 per cent of this key marine habitat is being lost worldwide per year, which is equivalent to a football field of seagrass lost every 30 minutes. 

#seagrass meadows #world seagrass day #seagrass #1 march #nursery habitat #ocean floor #marine habitat #nature-based solutions #un environment

[jaylienpotter]

"What do you wish to be when you grow up?"

Lily: I'm not sure. But I want a happy calm life. Married with kids. Perhaps a teacher. Or a CEO boss.

Mary: I'd love to be some kind of celebrity or influencer. Maybe an actress, model or fashion designer.

Dorcas: I like to think more about the present. Plans change all the time, why not enjoy the moment and see where the future takes you?

Marlene: hot rich sugar mommy.

Girls:

Dorcas: can I change my answer?

#Marlene being a mood #Marlesbian would be a fun nickname #marauders #marauders era #marauders fandom #the marauders #harry potter marauders #dead gay wizards #marauders valkyries #lily evans #mary macdonald #marlene mckinnon #dorcas meadowes #dorcas x marlene #marlene x dorcas #dorlene #seagrass

[cazzythefrogking]

marauders incorrect quotes pt 223

Dorcas: Do you want to explain the text you sent me last night? Marlene It was autocorrect. Dorcas: Autocorrect wrote "You're so hot. Please step on me."? Marlene: Yes.

#marauders #marauders era #dead gay wizards #incorrect quotes #marauders incorrect quotes #the marauders #incorrect marauders quotes #the marauders era #the marauders fandom #hp marauders #marauders harry potter #marlene mckinnon #dorcas meadowes #dorlene #seagrass #seagazelle #seameadowes #marlene x dorcas #dorcas x marlene #dorcas meadowes x marlene mckinnon #marlene mckinnon x dorcas meadows

[forxstboyfriend]

the concept of a ‘seagrass meadow’ is so important to me

#oh to be a tiny fish perhaps a invertebrate in a seagrass meadow

[snappysprinkledog]

what is doing biosciences in further education but learning about really cool shit in the natural world only to be told 5 seconds later about how its all dying

#oh yeah you like seagrass? #MASS DESTRUCTION OF SEAGRASS MEADOWS BABEY #think this really biodiverse enviroment is neat? #well theyre got a crazy high extinction rate and its predicted to all be gone by 2050! #im laughing but internally i am crying #biosciences #climate change #deforestation

[zestyderg]

BLUE FIRE UNDERWATER REAL NOT CLICKBAIT!!!1!11!

#fossil fighters #fossil fighters champions #the mer au #my doodles #the patrol team stray from the shark trio one night #and spot a mysterious blue flame in the deeper waters past the seagrass meadow #wonder what that could be all about

[gwydionmisha]

#Australia #Seagrass Meadow

[taanning]

#shortstory coastel village denmark mission eelgress revival waters seagrass meadows dedication

[bumblebeeappletree]

In recent years scientists monitoring the seafloor noticed something strange was happening... The beautiful and mysterious kelp forests and seagrass meadows are disappearing and being replaced with a barren landscape, covered in sea urchins and devoid of life.

ABOUT THIS PROJECT

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The beautiful and mysterious kelp forests and seagrass meadows are disappearing and being replaced with a barren landscape, covered in sea urchins and devoid of life. The coastal ecosystem is rapidly collapsing under our watch so scientists have set out to understand this phenomenon. Why are these massive urchin takeovers taking place? and Why is something that has maintained its balance for tens of thousands of years suddenly tipping over and falling apart?

We have found some answers in an unlikely character, a fluffy, cute looking marine mammal that inhabits these kelp forests, the sea otter.

🦦 Learn more about our sea otter project: https://mossy.earth/projects/rewildin...

Originally posted on YouTube on September 7th, 2021.

#mossy earth #Solarpunk #tidalpunk #rewilding #ocean #sea #seafloor #kelp forest #seagrass meadows #kelp #seagrass #sea grass #sea urchin #otters #sea otter #marine life #ecosystem #marine ecosystem #Youtube

[worldseagrassday]

Photo competition - World Seagrass Day 2024.

To celebrate world seagrass day on the 1st March 2024 the IORA Indian Ocean Blue Carbon Hub is holding a photography competition.

Seagrasses are marine flowering plants found in shallow waters creating meadows that are highly productive and biologically rich habitats. They only cover 0.1% of the world’s ocean floor but account for 10 – 18% of the total carbon burial in oceans. They also provide food and shelter for a diverse community of animals and sustain some of the largest fisheries as they provide nursey grounds for commercial important fish and prawn species. Initiated by environmental groups and endorsed by the United Nations, World Seagrass day highlights the critical role seagrasses play. The aim is to raise awareness about the conservation of seagrass meadows and their importance in combating climate change and supporting marine life. We want to see your amazing photography!

Send us your favourite seagrass related photos from the Indian Ocean. Entries can include pictures taken of you conducting seagrass field research, aerial drone photos or even photos in the water, we want to see your best pictures. Also, tell us in 25 words or less how you are celebrating World Seagrass Day. The winner will receive an IORA Blue Carbon Hub prize pack and have their photograph featured on the IORA Blue Carbon Hub website! How to enter Send your photos to IORA.

[email protected]

Entries will be accepted from 1st March 2024 and close 29 March 2024. No late entries will be accepted after 29th March.

#IORA Blue Carbon Hub prize #seagrass meadows #world seagrass day #seagrass #1 march #seagrasses #seagrass beds #australia #photo competition #csiro

[cazzythefrogking]

marauders incorrect quotes pt 72

Marlene: Are we fighting or flirting? Dorcas: I'm pinning you against a wall with my hand around your neck- Marlene: Your point?

ima just add this to all my posts now lol- marauderstober list!

#marauders #marauders era #marauders incorrect quotes #incorrect marauders quotes #incorrect quotes #dead gay wizards #the marauders fandom #the marauders era #the marauders #marlene mckinnon #marlene mackinnon #dorcas meadowes #marlene x dorcas #marlene mckinnon x dorcas meadows #dorcas x marlene #dorcas meadowes x marlene mckinnon #lesbian #dorlene #seagrass #seameadowes

[craftingcreatures]

Some sketchy concept stuff that I'm posting because I liked it but couldn't be bothered to refine it into an actual artwork.

These submarine behemoths are the Mermares (Clade Euhippocampiformes), secondarily aquatic descendants of the domestic donkey. The group first appeared around 29 million years post-cataclysm, in the late Nerian stage of the Diluvian period. They evolved from an animal called the Seabra, a descendant of the Donkey which adapted to exploit a niche with, thus far, zero competition - that of a large marine herbivore.

On earth, marine ecosystems are notable for the distinct lack of vascular plant life, a condition caused by a number of factors - most notably the osmotic stress caused by the saltwater. Most photosynthesis is carried out by algae. On Spero, however, things are different. Because Spero's oceans were generated relatively recently, from extraterrestrial ice particles, there just hasn't been enough time for erosion and the water cycle to deposit dissolved minerals in the water. As a result, Spero's seas are made of freshwater - a much more tolerable condition for most plants, and thus the diversity of marine vascular plants is much, much higher than on earth. Also, due to the flatness of the flooded landscape and lack of any real tectonic features, enormous swathes of the seabed lie within the photic zone, less than 200 meters from the surface. Thus, endless expanses of marine grasslands - the "seagrass prairies" - extend from the shore, often for hundreds of miles before the water finally gets too deep for photosynthesis to occur.

All of this plant life is an extremely attractive prospect for herbivores, and it was likely what drew the ancestral Seabra to forage in shallow coastal meadows in the first place. But as the oceans got deeper and life adapted, the Seabra had to adapt in kind - their hind legs rotated backwards to act as a pair of propulsive flukes, their forelimbs developed into steering flippers, and their nostrils retreated to sit on their foreheads.

One notable feature of the Mermares is hyperphalangy, a condition where the fingers have too many bones. It's very common in large marine tetrapods in Earth's history - whales and dolphins, Ichthyosaurs, Plesiosaurs, and Mosasaurs all exhibited hypoerphalangy to some degree - and seems to be associated with the specialization of the limbs into flippers. We would expect to see similar patterns in marine lineages on Spero. What's unique about the Mermares, however, is the sheer number of extra phalanges in the finger; at least fifteen in the shorter-finned species, and more than thirty in the longest-finned forms. And because Mermares - being equids - only possess one digit per limb, the result is a single long chain of flat, squarish bones which, in some cases, can reach over forty feet long - the longest arms ever to exist.

These ridiculous appendages produce a lot of drag and are merely adequate for steering and stabilization. So why do the Mermares have them?

The answer is that they're weapons. And particularly devastating ones, at that.

Mermares use their flagellating flippers as bludgeons, against both predators and conspecifics. The flippers are connected to powerful neck muscles and can be swung forward with impressive force; combined with a well-timed twisting of the giant horse's torso, the huge flippers can impact hard enough to shatter bone and pulverize flesh. The flippers themselves do not escape unscathed, and older individuals often have scarred or mangled flipper-tips from numerous battles over the years; but it's a small price to pay for survival.

When not being used against their enemies, the flippers may be folded back against the sides of the animal to reduce drag, or used as props to keep the animal's belly up off the seabed when feeding. Mermares spend up to 18 hours per day grazing, using their long neck to crop aquatic grasses and other vegetation in a wide arc without moving their bodies and occasionally dipping up to the surface to breathe. Mermares are keystone species in the seagrass prairies; as hindgut fermenters, they are not as efficient at processing plant matter as ruminants like goats, and produce large amounts of nutrient-rich dung which acts as fertilizer for the meadows and helps keep the environment productive. The dung also acts as food for a variety of fish and invertebrates.

Let's look at some of the Mermare's diversity, shall we?

Drepanarion (center right) One of the smaller Mermares, Drepanarion nonetheless grows to nearly 12 meters (39 feet) long. It is immediately recognizable by the bold black-and-yellow striping on the heads and necks of the stallions, and by the tall, narrow nuchal crest which extends from the withers and makes the stocky body look even more powerful. Unlike most other Mermares, which live in small groups of less than ten individuals, Drepanarion can be found in herds of over a hundred in the seagrass prairies of the Savanian (41 - 50 million years post-cataclysm). These nomadic throngs graze patches of seagrass nearly to the roots before moving on, giving the ecosystem time to regrow before returning in a few years' time. Drepanarion exhibits the most extreme sexual dimorphism of any Mermare, with stallions being both larger and more brightly coloured than mares; during the annual rut, males will fight each other in brutal bludgeoning matches to establish dominance and secure mates. To this end, they have some of the most extreme flipper anatomy of any Mermare; though not especially long (indeed, they have the shortest flippers of any derived genera), each phalanx bone has a protruding bony tubercle on the anterior edge which extends into a keratinous knob. These knobs both protect the flipper during combat and focus the force of the blow into a smaller area, dealing more damage.

Hipposeidon (bottom left) First appearing in the early Imberian (50 million years post-cataclysm), Hipposeidon is the largest of all Mermares and, indeed, the largest animal ever to exist on Spero, with stallions regularly reaching over 24 meters (80 feet) long (mares are slightly smaller). Extremely large specimens may even reach 30 meters (100 feet), although this is rare. This ludicrous size - nearly rivaling even the mighty Blue Whale of Earth - is possible only due to the sheer abundance of its food. Hipposeidon appears at the height of the seagrass prairie's extent, and can pack away almost 900 kilograms (1900 pounds) of seagrass per day. This superlative food requirement has important consequences for Hipposeidon's behaviour; this animal is migratory. Seagrass prairies are extremely productive ecosystems, but nonetheless Spero is a seasonal world; as the summer growth gives way to the winter die-back, the greatest of the Mermares must migrate across the equator to seek out a continuous food source to fuel its immense bulk. In this way Hipposeidon experiences a perpetual summer, interrupted only by the biannual migration from north to south and back again. Female Hipposeidon are pregnant for about one year, timing the birth of the single large foal with arrival to the feeding grounds; the six-meter-long foal enjoys a long childhood nursing and playing in shallow summer waters, gathering strength before making the long swim across the barren tropical zone to pastures new.

Bathypegasus (top left) The last and possibly the weirdest of the great Mermares, Bathypegasus is the only member of the clade which is not a grazer. Instead, it is a specialist feeder on pelagic, free-floating ferns. These ferns are a seasonal bounty, growing in huge numbers in the tropical summers of the late Imberian (60 million years post-cataclysm), where the planetary ring system shades out large portions of the planet for half the year. A close relative of Hipposeidon, Bathypegasus has left its ties to the seabed behind, becoming a fast, powerful swimmer which spends most of its life far above the sea floor. Its flippers have adapted to be even more ludicrously long - the longest forearms of any animal, ever, with each one measuring nearly 14 meters (45 feet) in length and each containing at least 35 individual bones. No longer used to prop the animal up off the seabed, these whiplike flippers are narrow and streamlined and can be whipped through the water at speeds of nearly 20 meters per second (that's over 40 mph) - the most extreme weaponry of any Mermare, and used to great effect against predators. Bathypegasus, like Hipposeidon, is migratory, following the blooms of pelagic ferns across Spero's oceans. Thanks to this midwater diet it is the only genus of Mermare to survive past the mid-Imberian extinction, when rising sea levels and steepening coastal slopes caused the seagrass prairies to disappear. Bathypegasus finally died out in the Ultimoxerian stage, around 75 million years post-cataclysm, the last and weirdest of the giant marine horses.

#spec bio #spec evo #speculative biology #speculative evolution #Vicis Aeternum #Spero #seed world #equid #donkey #they're like if a whale and a horse had a baby and that baby was somehow also a diplodocus

[cypherdecypher]

Animal of the Day!

Dugong (Dugong dugon)

(Photo by Smithsonian Ocean)

Conservation Status- Critically Endangered

Habitat- Indo-West Pacific Ocean

Size (Weight/Length)- 250 kg; 4 m 

Diet- Seagrasses

Cool Facts- Although related to manatees, the dugong is the only living member of the Dugongidae family. Dugongs are shy and only group together on rare occasions during mass seagrass growth. During these gatherings, the water is filled with clicks and whistles as they communicate. Due to poor eyesight, only touch and sound keeps these animals socially connected. Dugongs have one of the longest periods to reach sexual maturity of any mammal, ranging up to 18 years before they can have offspring. Females only have a single calf every five years or so. The calf will stay with its mom up to three years before splitting off to find its own underwater meadow. Sadly, due to their slow movement and tendency to swim along the ocean surface, dugongs are easy targets for poaching and tangling plastics. Hopefully, other countries will follow Australia’s lead and create marine sanctuaries to protect these amazing animals.

Rating- 13/10 (Don’t let them go the way of the Steller’s sea cow.)

Requested by @callmepyrus

#animal of the day #animals #mammals #marine animals #wednesday #august 2 #dugong #biology #science #conservation #the more you know #request #callmepyrus

[naffeclipse]

Okay basing this off the fact Eclipse can travel waters, what if Yn tells him they can't live in one cold and he just takes them to the warmer waters?

Heheh seahorse yn

Oh my gosh oh my gosh hhhhghghghhghg new Y/N just dropped

This would be one setting where it's not in the Arctic but Eclipse has left those waters to drift about, and look what he happens to find! A lovely little siren, hiding in the kelp.

A leafy sea dragon that can camouflage and even change colors to hide themselves in seaweed and the kelp formations they live amongst. Speed is not their forte. They also have a prehensile tail that can coil around or grasp things. They would live in deeper waters and have beautiful dark brown, yellow, and greenish hues to their leaf-like appendages over their tail with small, transparent dorsal and pectoral fins!

Every time Eclipse glides through the warm waters of seagrass, searching like a hungry shark, Y/N clings tightly to kelp with wide, terrified eyes. They watch him drift closer, hoping against hope that their tail colors have shifted enough to blend them into invisibility. But, somehow, he always snatches them out of the protection of the underwater forest and meadows. Y/N cannot run away, they simply lack the agility and speed, so they're stuck once Eclipse has his hands on them.

Y/N gets used to Eclipse's grabbiness—it's strange to interact with an apex predator that doesn't want to eat them (at least not right away.) They will relax enough to let Eclipse pull them along, his pace so much faster, and even coil their tail around him when Eclipse decides to stretch out on the seagrass for cuddles.

Y/N's leafy appendages are a great source of awe and admiration for Eclipse, and Y/N has never seen such a black and white fish like him before, especially not in their home. Eclipse loves Y/N's slow and drawn-out singing. Y/N doesn't often sing, especially when he's taking hold of them, but he'll keep his hands off just to let them echo a few notes while weaving in between the long kelp strands. He'll follow, much less graceful in the watery forest, but he never loses sight of them.

#ghrhghghhrhrrhrh new y/n #i'm not normal #y/n grows to accept that once eclipse grabs them he has them for as long as he likes—which grows to be more fond and gentle view #once y/n sees he's not hungry for leafy sea dragon sirens #seadragon!reader #orca!eclipse #cailaventog #apex polarity