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Gulf Islands National Seashore
Seagrass Beds
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Within the Seashore boundaries are thriving seagrass beds. Threats to these important resources include: degraded water quality, dredge and fill projects, physical impacts from boat groundings and boat propellers and anchors. Please use caution when fishing and do not walk through seagrass beds. Please do not anchor your boat in these areas.
Seagrasses are a valuable part of the marine environment and support a million-dollar fishery. Most commercial and recreationally important fish, crabs and shrimp spend some time of their lives in seagrass beds. Seagrass beds help filter pollutants from the water, contribute to water clarity by trapping suspended sediments and provide food and shelter for juvenile fish, shrimp and crabs. Manatees, green sea turtles, and migratory birds depend on seagrass beds for foraging.
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Did You Know?
Did you know that two thirds of Gulf Islands National Seashore is under water? The largest, most common, mammal in this underwater realm is the Atlantic bottlenose dolphin.
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Last Updated: August 24, 2006 at 15:51 EST |