Seagrass Wars: The Spots Awaken

Oysters and Seagrass—Guardians of the Sea!

Oysters—Nature’s vacuum cleaners 

• A single oyster can filter up to 2 gallons of seawater EVERY HOUR. That’s almost 50 gallons a day! 
• Learn more fun oyster facts here (54 minute NOAA Live! video; sign language interpreted; for grades 2-8)

Seagrass beds are important because:

• They shelter for all kinds of marine species! Click here to tour a Puget Sound eelgrass bed with Washington Sea Grant naturalist Jeff Adams (starts around minute 4).
• They act like ‘refrigerators of the sea’, full of worms, crabs and shrimp for fish, seabirds and marine mammals to eat. How many tasty critters can you spot in this eelgrass meadow? 
• They help fight climate change and ocean acidification by capturing carbon. Click here to read more about seagrass superpowers! 

Simon and his oyster friends need our help! Which of these actions will YOU take to protect seagrass from disease and and other kinds of harm?

• I live on Puget Sound; I can volunteer to help care for critical marine habitat like eelgrass beds!
• I live along a different coast; I can join a volunteer beach clean-up, plant a rain garden to filter polluted stormwater, or hold a fundraiser for a local marine stewardship organization.
• I live a long way from the coast, but that’s OK… Any action I take to reduce carbon dioxide emissions that are warming the oceans will help seagrass beds all over the world!
• I can vote for people and laws that will protect seagrass beds and help reduce carbon dioxide emissions.
• I’m still too young to vote, but I can share what I’ve learned with adults in my community, so they’ll understand why the ocean needs our help!

Thanks for supporting seagrass and ocean health! You can make a difference wherever you are, but if you live near Puget Sound, you can volunteer with Washington Sea Grant, the Washington Environmental Council, the Northwest Straits Foundation, and Sound Water Stewards (just to name a few!).