The Grass Could Be Greener

'Seagrasses are critical, and we are about to lose them.' Learn more about seagrasses, their global decline, and some promising solutions emerging in Australia.

By Amber Taylor

Out of sight Take a look underwater

We are fortunate in Australia to have beautiful beaches with stunningly biodiverse near-shore marine life. The swaying seagrass meadows make up an important part of this living ecosystem. It is lovely to snorkel just metres from the shore over the gently moving leaf canopy to watch the crabs, schools of juvenile fish, and starfish quietly going about their business. The health of seagrasses is generally most threatened where human populations are high.

by Elizabeth Sinclair

For People & Plants Spring 2021

Special issue on the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration

Seagrass science inspires Malgana artist

Gathaagudu (two waters), also known as Shark Bay, is the traditional country of Malgana peoples. It is also home to expansive seagrass (wirriya jalyanu) meadows. This article takes you on a high-resolution journey to the surface of seagrass leaves and the individual cells giving life and colour within them. Exploring the anatomical structures of seagrasses provides inspiration for environmental science student and emerging Malgana artist, Tiahna Oxenham.

by Elizabeth Sinclair, Tiahna Oxenham and Wolfgang Lewandrowski

For People & Plants Winter 2021

Workshopping seagrass (Wirriya Jalyanu) restoration in Shark Bay (Gathaagudu)

University of Western Australia seagrass researchers and Malgana Rangers conducted a joint workshop in August as part of a Marine Biodiversity Hub project to assist the natural recovery of seagrasses at Shark Bay.

Unravelling the mystery of Shark Bay seagrass reproduction

Shark Bay or Gathaagudu (two-waters) to the Malgana Traditional Owners, is a pristine ecosystem of global significance. The largest temperate seagrass meadows on the planet were severely impacted by an extreme heatwave. Our research examines flowering and fruiting density, genetic diversity and mating system in Posidonia australis.

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by Jane Edgeloe and Elizabeth Sinclair

For People & Plants Winter 2020

Working together to assist seagrass recovery at Shark Bay

Western Australia’s Shark Bay, or Gathaagudu (two-waters), is recognised on the World Heritage List as a place of exceptional natural features. See how researchers are working with Malgana Rangers to restore damaged seagrass meadows.

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by Elizabeth Sinclair, Gary Kendrick, Amrit Kendrick

Wetlands Australia 32, February 2020

Breaking the plastic pipeline

What did we use before single-use plastics became ingrained in our everyday lives? Our precious wetlands and vast oceans are often the final stop for much of the world’s plastic products. Find out what Kings Park Science are doing to help?

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by Elizabeth Sinclair, Todd Erickson, Tony Scalzo

For People & Plants Summer 2019

Threatened plant translocation case study: Posidonia australis

Posidonia australis meadows have experienced large reductions in distribution across six NSW estuaries since the mid-1900s. It is at risk of becoming locally extinct in some estuaries due to on-going impacts. 

We organised a conference for 570 people without using plastic. Here’s how it went

What did we use before "single use" became ingrained in our everyday lives? The organising committee for the national AMSA 2019 conference held in Fremantle this week wanted to eliminate plastic. Here's how that went...

Discovering the biota of the wetland

The June 2019 edition of the Australian Association for Environmental Education OZEEnews features an article by Angela Rossen on her biodiversity outreach work.

New beginnings – bottleneck in the cycle of seagrass life

Seagrasses are clonal plants and therefore may persist for a long time. They are among some of the oldest plants on earth, with some clones thought to be thousands of years old. However, renewal, or the recruitment of new genetic individuals, also occurs in clonal species. This tends to be sporadic and patchy, but can be very difficult to quantify.

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by Elizabeth Sinclair and Gary Kendrick

For People & Plants Winter 2017

What fish & fishos need: Why we should all look after our seagrasses!

Healthy seagrass meadows play a big part in making some of the inshore and sheltered water fishing in WA so good. In fact, research has suggested 400 square meters of seagrass can support up to 2000 tonnes of fish a year! The total number and diversity of fish is limited by the amount of habitat available to them. 

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by Elizabeth Sinclair

Recfishwest Broad Cast June 2017

The underwater world of the Kimberley

Renown for its extreme tides, the waters of the Kimberley host seagrasses and macroalgae that thrive against the odds. A three-year study combined science and traditional knowledge to uncover some of the secrets of these fascinating species, and the herbivores that feed on them.

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by Mat Vanderklift and Gary Kendrick

Landscope magazine Autumn 2017

Learning about the amazing animal and plant diversity of our beaches

If we are to protect and conserve nature let us begin by discovering it for its own sake and marveling at its beauty and complexity.

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by Angela Rossen

Coastlines Autumn 2017

Sexual promiscuity in the shallows

Western Australia’s vast meadows of Posidonia australis seagrass are amazingly productive with massive flowering events annually in the cool winter waters. Constantly moving water presents challenges for effective underwater pollination, but seagrasses have evolved special traits to adapt to these difficulties.

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by Elizabeth Sinclair

For People & Plants Spring 2014

Dispersal on the high seas - the ecological genetics of seagrass seed dispersal.

Seagrasses are marine flowering plants, with Western Australia being home to more species than any other place on earth. However, seagrass meadows here, and elsewhere, are rapidly diminishing due to human impacts, and research is focusing on understanding genetic patterns and their ecological drivers.

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by Elizabeth Sinclair

For People & Plants Autumn 2012

Restoration genetics of seagrass meadows

Seagrasses belong to a large group of marine flowering plants, adapted for an entirely submerged life. Just like flowering plants on the land, they produce flowers and seeds, but with pollen and seed dispersal through the water column. Seagrasses also exhibit extensive vegetative (or clonal) reproduction through rhizomes. 

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by Elizabeth Sinclair

For People & Plants Summer 2009