Guided Exploration – Submerged Aquatic Vegetation

Guided Exploration

Back to Submerged Aquatic Vegetation and Seagreass

Grade Level:

MS/HS

Subject:

Submerged Aquatic Vegetation and Seagrass

Duration:

Five Hours

Location:

Classroom

SAV-ing Our Ocean: Submerged Aquatic Vegetation and Seagrass

Queen Conch, Photo Credit: NOAA

Overview:

Students explore the importance of submerged aquatic vegetation and seagrass, how to identify them, why they are in decline, and how they can be restored.

Activities include:

SAV and Seagrass Habitat Drawings
SAV and Seagrass Ecosystem Diagram
SAV and Seagrass Food Web
Seagrass Word Search
Seagrass Monitoring

Objectives:

Students will learn what SAV and seagrass are.
Students will learn why SAV and seagrass are important.
Students will learn to identify regional SAV and seagrass.
Students will learn about why SAV and seagrass is currently in danger.
Students will learn about how seagrass populations are being restored.

Background:

NOAA explains that “SAV (submerged aquatic vegetation) is a term used for rooted aquatic plants that grow completely underwater. These plants occur in both freshwater and saltwater but in estuaries, where fresh and saltwater mix together, they can be an especially important habitat for fish, crabs, and other aquatic organisms.” Read more about SAV here: SAV background.

Mutton snapper in seagrass, Photo Credit: Kurtis Gregg, NOAA

Session 1: What is Seagrass?

Overview:

Students will utilize the tools provided below to develop an understanding of Seagrass and what makes it unique.

Objective:

Students will identify seagrasses and explore the differences between seagrass, seaweed, and SAVs.

Materials:

Online Tool: Submerged Aquatic Vegetation - Gulf-wide

Reference Material: Coastal Louisiana SAV and Seagrasses

Article: "Seagrasses and Seagrass Beds"

Video: "What is seagrass (Seagrasses | Ecology In Action)"

Worksheet: How to identify seagrass

Procedure:

Ask students if they have ever seen seagrass. Where were they when they saw it? How could they tell it was seagrass and not seaweed? Do they know the difference between the two?

Explore the map to discover where seagrasses are located along the Gulf coast.

Watch the video

Examine the Submerged and Floating Aquatic Plants of Louisiana database.

Pair up, Read, and Complete the “How to identify seagrass” worksheet using information from the article. How does this article help us understand what seagrass is, and how it is different from seaweed?

Create an illustrated drawing of an underwater seascape full of seagrass and its inhabitants. What different animals live within the seagrass? Encourage students to add them in their drawings.

Share and discuss the finished drawings.

Assessment: Completed worksheets, drawings, and observations during discussions.

Session 2: Why is seagrass important?

Source: Florida Fish and Wildlife

Overview:

Students will use the resources in this session to learn why seagrass is important.

Objective:

Students will identify the importance of seagrass and how it affects everything around it. They will use this knowledge to create a diagram of a seagrass ecosystem.

Materials:

Online Tool: Magic of Seagrass

Reference Material: Why is Seagrass Important?

Reference Material:

Video: Blue Carbon/ How Seagrass is our Ocean's Wonder Plant and Their Role in Fighting Climate Change

Video: Ocean Acidification

Procedure:

Ask students why they think SAV and seagrass is important. Do they think about seagrass when they think about the ocean's ecosystem?

Explore the online tool and identify seagrass importance

Watch the videos "Blue carbon | How seagrass is our ocean's wonder plant and their role in fighting climate change” and “ Ocean acidification”

Pair up and create a diagram/picture of everything we covered. (habitat, carbon, food biodiversity. See reference picture).

Share and discuss the finished diagrams.

Assessment: Completed diagrams and observation during discussions.

Session 3: Seagrass Identification

Overview:

Students will learn to identify regional SAV and seagrass.

Objective:

Students will learn how to identify types of seagrass, where they are commonly found, and why they are found in these locations.

Materials:

Online Tool: How to Identify Seagrass

Reference Material: Common Submerged Aquatic Plants

Article: Common Submerged Aquatic Plants

Video: Seagrass Ecosystem Webinar (22 minutes)

Procedure:

Ask students if they have ever seen seagrass in real life before. Have students look through the “Common Submerged Aquatic Plants” article to see if they can identify any species they may have seen before.

Watch the video “Seagrass Ecosystem Webinar”.

Explore the “Submerged and Floating Aquatic Plants of Louisiana” website, and have students pick out their favorite species of seagrass.

Pair up and Complete an identification activity. Pick your favorite SAV or seagrass species and use the guide from the online tool to scientifically identify this species

Create a food web of the ecosystem that seagrass inhabit.

Share and discuss the student’s favorite seagrass. What makes the species their favorite (the look, the characteristics, etc.)?

Assessment: Identification activity, SAV and seagrass food web, discussion.

Session 4: Why is seagrass in decline?

Overview:

Students will learn about why seagrass is currently in danger.

Objective:

Students will investigate the causes of seagrass loss and the effects the “stressors” have on the seagrass population and their ecosystem.

Materials:

Reference Materials: What is the problem? (PowerPoint)

Article: Assessing Water Quality with SAV

Video: Seagrass: Life in the Underwater Meadows (2 minutes, 51 seconds)

Procedure:

Ask students what they think some of the significant stressors of seagrass decline are. Then, have students record their answers on a sheet of paper for discussion later. (mind map of what they already learned)

Watch the video “Seagrass: Life in the Underwater Meadows”. Look at mind map, build on what is written

Explore the PowerPoint “What is the problem?”

Pair up and Read “Land Loss, not nutrients, biggest problem for seagrass around the Chandeleur Islands”.

Create a chart of the causes of seagrass decline, and the effect they have on seagrass and its abundance.

Share and discuss the causes and effects, and brainstorm solutions of what the community can do to help increase the abundance of seagrass.

Assessment: Original response, chart, and brainstormed solutions.

Session 5: Seagrass Restoration

Overview:

Students will learn about how seagrass populations are being restored.

Objective:

Students will investigate SAV and seagrass restoration, current projects, and what the future may hold for restoration opportunities.

Materials:

Reference Material: "Restoring Eelgrass on Virginia's Eastern Shore "

Article: "How Planting 70 Million Eelgrass Seeds Led to an Ecosystem's Rapid Recovery"

Video: "Using Seagrass to Fight the Climate Emergency / WWF "

Online Tool: Gulf of Mexico Data Atlas

Procedure:

Ask students why they think seagrass restoration is important? Focus on ecosystem and sealife effects. Debate…

Watch the video “Using seagrass to fight the climate emergency”.

Explore the “Gulf of Mexico Data Atlas” with students.

Pair up and Read “How planting 70 million eelgrass seeds led to an ecosystem’s rapid recovery” and “Restoring Eelgrass on Virginia’s Eastern Shore”.

Create a map of where future SAV and seagrass restoration projects could take place.

Share and discuss the locations, and determine what locations would be best based on access, current seagrass density, and project size (reality of completion).

Assessment: Map of future locations of restoration projects. What is necessary for seagrass or seagrass restoration? (Supporting Materials)