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Vegetation
Eelgrass (Zostera marina) and Widgeon grass (Ruppia
maritima) are common underwater flowering plants that are
very salt tolerant. These are only two of some 50 kinds of seagrasses.
Widgeon grass is actually not a true seagrass, but rather a freshwater
plant with high tolerance for salt. All seagrasses have special
adaptations that enable them to survive in salt water, including
specialized air-filled cells that provide buoyancy and support.
Why
they're important:
Underwater seagrass beds are among the most productive ecosystems
on the planet, capable not only of harnessing the suns energy,
but providing essential nurseries and food for an abundance of
marine life. More than 20 types of commercially valuable finfish
and shellfish feed in eelgrass beds at some point in their lives.
Research in Chesapeake Bay has shown that the density of blue
crabs is thirty times greater in grass beds than in unvegetated
areas of the Bay. In addition, seagrass beds help protect shorelines
from erosion by stabilizing sediment and modifying currents. This
submerged vegetation is also a valuable food for waterfowl, providing
nutritious seeds, roots and tubers.
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Photo: Ron Phillips
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