We had an incredible 2023! We monitored water quality, kicked off a new eelgrass monitoring project, and reached over 1000 community members about the importance of Fishers Island’s eelgrass meadows. And let’s not forget about our collaboration with the amazing @ficonservancy sentinels and their intern @annarwhitee to record the most MPA Watch data ever! We are so excited for the progress we will make in 2024! 🎉🎉🎉
#saveourseagrass #fishersislandny #eelgrass
Our final water collection of the season was brutally cold and windy 🥶, but the water quality was excellent! We’ll be back at it next year when the temperatures warm up.
On the spookiest night of the year, we’re thinking about the villains of the seagrass world. 👻 Any idea how to dress up like shade? Or maybe an algal bloom is a more achievable costume. 🤔
A calm autumn morning to collect water samples and watch the sunrise! The cooler weather brought better water quality with it 🤩. There are still a couple of good weather days ahead to enjoy it! 🎉
Did you know that plants native to Fishers Island are better adapted to our soil type? That’s how they can stay healthy even without additional nutrients from us!
Decreasing the need for fertilizer on the island will help improve the terrestrial and marine environment!
#nativeplants #fishersisland #waterquality #eelgrass #saveourseagrass
We spent an excellent morning with the oceanography class at FI School to do a water collection and sample analysis! It was wonderful to encourage these bright students to discover connections between water quality and ecosystem health 🤩
We are absolutely blow away by the amazing eelgrass Genie Trevor found around the rocks at Hungry Point! 🤩😍This meadow is crucial habitat for spawning, which supports healthy and sustainable fisheries in Long Island Sound. Fishers Island is one of the last places in Long Island Sound that can support critical eelgrass habitat.
#saveourseagrass #fishersisland #eelgrass #discoverearth
Dissolved oxygen titration - part 3! Lots of prep to get to the cool part! This step uses a chemical reaction that changes the color of the solution as an indicator. Once the solution goes clear we can do a simple chemical calculation that determines the amount of oxygen in the sample.
#fishersisland #waterquality #waterqualitymonitoring #eelgrass #eelgrassmonitoring
Chlorophyll Sample Prep Part 2: Filtration. This step gathers all the chlorophyll for analysis on the filters. It is important to filter the same amount of liquid on each filter so the chlorophyll is not over or undercounted!
#eelgrass #eelgrassmonitoring #fishersisland #waterquality #waterqualitymonitoring
Ever wonder what eelgrass looks like on a depth finder? Here it is! There are so many ways to find eelgrass but this one might be one of the more tech-heavy methods. The easiest way to see if you are over an eelgrass bed is to check over the side of your boat! If you see eelgrass, ensure you use seagrass safe boating techniques to avoid damaging these unique ecosystems!
#fishersisland #eelgrass #seagrass #seagrasssafe #saveourseagrass