Seagrass communities are vitally important ecosystems that support and foster organisms across trophic levels. Understanding the drivers of seagrass distribution and extent in estuary systems is valuable for conservation and…

Seagrass species composition and distribution reflect environmental changes, making these measures potentially useful estuarine indicators. An annual seagrass transect and quadrat monitoring survey program including 50 locations in Charlotte Harbor,…

Bacterial communities in sediments engage in activities that determine the pathways and rates of organic matter remineralization. Changes in bacterial community composition might result in greater restoration success if interactions…

The objective of this research was to determine whether the survival and growth rate of transplanted seagrasses is hindered by sediment sulfide addition and bacterial community disruption. A microcosm experiment…

In 2004–2007, the beaches of Sanibel Island, Florida, were affected by large drifts of macroalgae that accumulated on shore. The adjacent seafloor is composed of three ecoregions: inshore, nearshore and…

The submersed aquatic vegetation (SAV) species Vallisneria americana Michx. (tape grass) is a valuable resource in the Caloosahatchee estuary and in many other aquatic systems. Given the variable nature of freshwater inflows…

In southwest Florida, changes in hydrology have fundamentally changed the timing and amount of freshwater delivered to the estuarine ecosystem. Biological indicators such as oyster and submerged aquatic vegetation distribution…

Large accumulations of stranded macroalgae on the beaches of Sanibel Island from 2004 to 2007 were unusual and thought to be driven by high rainfall and river flows stemming from…