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Seagrass Awareness Month: Florida Marine Research Institute

Seagrass Facts

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Growing Seagrass Awareness

March is seagrass awareness month in Florida, which may seem an unusual subject, until you realize that the seagrasses found here are the most productive in the entire United States and that south Florida's seagrass community is the largest sea meadow in the world. Penny Hall studies seagrasses for the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission...

Even though Florida has the nation's largest and most productive seagrass beds, there is concern about their health. Found mostly in the shallow waters the beds play a critical role for fish and other marine life. Penny Hall is a state research administrator...

March is seagrass awareness month in Florida -- a chance for state agencies to stress the importance of seagrasses to Florida's environment and economy. It also lets scientists like Penny Hall point out the many challenges to the health of Florida's seagrasses. The greatest of which, she says, is pollution...

Florida's millions of acres of seagrasses deserve much of the credit for the clear water that surrounds Florida. While the grasses need water clarity to survive, they also contribute to it. Biologist Penny Hall studies seagrasses at the Florida Marine Research Institute...

Florida has millions of acres of seagrasses along its coastline, including the world's largest seagrass meadow near the Florida Keys. But the grasses are extremely sensitive to pollution and water clarity. The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission's Penny Hall says that makes the grasses a great indicator for pollution...