Erin, U.R - Sea Grass Monitoring

Turtle swimming in sea grass

This week we will be monitoring fixed sea grass transects in the Indian river lagoon. I have already written down all what I need to in my rite in the rain field notebook, so when we are out in the field it will be easy to jot down the information quickly when the boat moves from spot to spot. I am not to excited about the cold water, but I feel like this experience could open up a lot of potential research opportunities for me in what I decide to do for my research project. One thing that I am very curious about is what type of results the marine discovery center is getting from doing these sea grass transects over time. When Annie came and spoke to our class she discussed with us that this has been an on going project. She talked about the different types of sea grass and algae that we might encounter. Also, about what animals we might come in contact with too. She explained to our lab as well what instruments we will be using to take measurements of the sea grass as well. What I am most interested in is what is the marine center trying to see from doing all of these transects over time? Are they watching the algae take over the sea grass which could potentially lead to the destruction of the sea grass? Does it mean that less sea grass could potentially means less animals living within the area? Whatever the questions are, I am very interested in what this experience could lead to.