Seagrasses are the (only) flowering plants which grow in marine environments. There are about 60 species of fully marine seagrasses which belong to four families, all in the order Alismatales. Seagrasses evolved from terrestrial plants which recolonised the ocean 70 to 100 million years ago.
The Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary is a U.S. National Marine Sanctuary in the Florida Keys. It includes the Florida Reef, the only barrier coral reef in North America and the third-largest coral barrier reef in the world. It also has extensive mangrove forest and seagrass fields. The Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary, designated in 1990, is the ninth national marine sanctuary to be established in a system that comprises 13 sanctuaries and two marine national monuments. The Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary protects approximately 2,900 square nautical miles of coastal and ocean waters from the estuarine waters of south Florida along the Florida Keys archipelago, encompassing more than 1,700 islands, out to the Dry Tortugas National Park, reaching into the Atlantic Ocean, Florida Bay and the Gulf of Mexico.
A seagrass meadow or seagrass bed is an underwater ecosystem formed by seagrasses. Seagrasses are marine (saltwater) plants found in shallow coastal waters and in the brackish waters of estuaries. Seagrasses are flowering plants with stems and long green, grass-like leaves. They produce seeds and pollen and have roots and rhizomes which anchor them in seafloor sand.
The Flora of Ashmore and Cartier Islands consists of 16 families, 23 genera and 27 species. Four of these species are introduced and naturalised. In addition, two species have been introduced but not naturalised. The vegetation is dominated by shrubs, grasses and creepers. The vast majority of species have seeds that are very easily transported by the wind, birds or the sea.
The Seagrasses of Western Australia are submerged flowering plants found along the coast, around islands, and in Estuaries of Western Australia. The region contains some of the largest seagrass meadows in the world, and is the most diverse in the number of species. The variety of habitats along its western and southern coasts is often soft sands in shallow subtropical waters, ideal for these plants.
Kadmat Island, also known as Cardamom Island, is a coral island belonging to the Amindivi subgroup of islands of the Lakshadweep archipelago in India. Measuring 9.3 kilometres (5.8 mi) in length, the island has a lagoon with a width of 1.5 kilometres (0.93 mi) covering an area of 25 square kilometres (9.7 sq mi). The ecological feature of the island is of coral reef with seagrass, and marine turtles which nestle here. The Ministry of Environment and Forests (India) has notified the island as a marine protected area for ensuring conservation of the island's animal, plant, or other type of organism, and other resources.
Enhalus is a monotypic genus of marine flowering plants. The sole species is Enhalus acoroides. Enhalus is large seagrass native to coastal waters of the tropical Indian and Western Pacific Oceans. It is the only species of seagrass that does aerial surface pollination in which the pollen and the styles remain dry. Enhalus is surface pollinated with male flowers that detach from the plant to float on the surface until they reach a female flower where pollination can occur. Enhalus acoroides is considered a slow-growing, "climax" species.
Thalassia is a marine seagrass genus comprising two known species.
Thalassia testudinum, commonly known as turtlegrass, is a species of marine seagrass. It forms meadows in shallow sandy or muddy locations in the Caribbean Sea and the Gulf of Mexico.
Cymodocea nodosa is a species of seagrass in the family Cymodoceaceae and is sometimes known as little Neptune grass. As a seagrass, it is restricted to growing underwater and is found in shallow parts of the Mediterranean Sea and certain adjoining areas of the Atlantic Ocean.
The Gulf flounder is a species of saltwater flounder.
Blue carbon refers to carbon dioxide removed from the atmosphere by the world's coastal ocean ecosystems, mostly mangroves, salt marshes, seagrasses and macroalgae, through plant growth and the accumulation and burial of organic matter in the soil.
Halodule wrightii is an aquatic plant in the Cymodoceaceae family. It is referred to by the common names shoalweed or shoal grass, and is a plant species native to seacoasts of some of the warmer oceans of the world. It has been reported from California, Texas, Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, North Carolina, Maryland, Yucatán, Quintana Roo, Tabasco, Costa Rica, Belize, Panamá, Cuba, Trinidad & Tobago, Venezuela, Brazil, Australia, Cape Verde, and Madagascar.
Halodule uninervis is a species of seagrass in the family Cymodoceaceae. It is native to the western Pacific and Indian Oceans. Common names include narrowleaf seagrass in English and a'shab bahriya in Arabic.
Halophila baillonis is a species of aquatic plant in the family Hydrocharitaceae. It is referred to by the common name clover grass. It is native to Brazil, Cayman Islands, Colombia, Costa Rica, Jamaica, Leeward Islands, Netherlands Antilles, Panama, Puerto Rico, Trinidad and Tobago, and Venezuela. It is listed on the IUCN Red List as "vulnerable" due to its naturally rare occurrence and fragmented populations.
Schizotheca is the scientific name of several genera of organisms and may refer to:
In ecology, sulfide intrusion refers to an excess of sulfide molecules (S2-) in the soil that interfere with plant growth, often seagrass.
The Guiuan Protected Landscape and Seascape, also known as the Guiuan Marine Reserve, is a protected area associated with the Guiuan Island Group which is located off the coast of the municipality of Guiuan on the eastern side of Leyte Gulf in the Philippines. The protected area consists of the following islands from within the group: Calicoan, Manicani, Suluan, Tubabao, Victory, Homonhon and other smaller islands and their surrounding reefs. It also includes the coastal area of mainland Guiuan in Eastern Samar covering a total area of 60,448 hectares. The land which now comprises the conservation area was previously declared as a Marine Reserve and Tourist Zone and was placed under the administration and control of the Philippine Tourism Authority in 1978. It was re-proclaimed and re-classified as a protected landscape/seascape in 1994 under the National Integrated Protected Areas System Act of 1992.
Syringodium isoetifolium, commonly known as noodle seagrass, is a species of flowering plant in the family Cymodoceaceae, growing underwater in marine habitats. It forms seagrass meadows in shallow sandy or muddy locations in the Indian and Pacific Oceans.
