It has been a couple months since our last update on our very first eelgrass trough. Since then, numerous happenings have gotten us even more excited about this project! The tank we are using to grow eelgrass has been cleaned and ready to go.


We now have a healthy and plentiful tank filled with eelgrass and tiny sea critters.

On March 1, 2011, students from Santa Ana High School were able to go to the Back Bay Science Center to explore what we have done with our eelgrass so far. The students split into several groups and rotated through four educational stations we had set up.

Station 1:

Students were given a chance to examine some of the microorganisms and tiny creatures some of our volunteers and interns helped dig up at Back Bay.







Station 2:
While one of the volunteers, Matt dug up mud by the shore, students rinsed the mud and found little sea creatures they could analyze.





















Station 3:

Students also got a chance to perform water testing to detect traces of Ammonia, Nitrogen, and Phosphates in seawater with the help of volunteers, David and Kathy.






Station 4:
Students got a hands on experience to learn about the benefits of eelgrass from Amanda.









Little sea creatures from our eelgrass tank got a chance to shine in the spotlight.














Clean up time!

Part of the fun about growing eelgrass is maintaining a clean environment for this seaplant to grow. Today, we stopped by Back Bay Science Center to clean the tank by taking out dead pieces of eelgrass and replanting some of the it. We also performed a water test to make sure our eelgrass was growing safely.