A major boost for seagrass restoration in the Solent has been delivered this spring, as the Solent Seascape Project and its volunteers successfully planted hundreds of thousands of seeds and transplants across key sites on both sides of the water – more than in any previous year.
At Thorness and Priory Bay on the Isle of Wight, project partner Project Seagrass planted 175,416 seeds and 1,154 seagrass transplants, helping to restore an area just over the size of one and a half football pitches of the threatened intertidal plant.
At Calshot, Hampshire and Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust, who are also a partner in the project, planted more than three times as many seeds as last year (100,700), while a further 3,950 intertidal seeds were also planted by the Trust on the River Hamble, where seagrass was all but lost.
Support from volunteers
Volunteer involvement has been central to the success of this year’s work, from seed collection and preparation to planting in the field.
More than 60 volunteers came together overall, contributing over 100 volunteer hours to planting at Calshot alone and representing more than three times the effort recorded at the site last year.
Why seagrass matters – and how much has been lost
Seagrass meadows support a spectacular diversity of marine life including endangered seahorses, pipefish, cuttlefish and thornback rays. They also help to store carbon and stabilise the sediment on our sea floors, which can help combat climate change and prevent coastal erosion. Yet up to 92% of UK seagrass has been lost over the past century and recovery has been limited by pollution, dredging, boat anchoring and coastal development.
Anouska Mendzil, Senior Science Officer at Project Seagrass and Swansea University,
“The success of seagrass restoration and conservation initiatives relies heavily on the dedication of community volunteers, contributing vital hands-on support, local knowledge and long-term stewardship to protecting and improving biodiversity and resilience of these important marine and coastal habitats in the Solent.”
Tim Ferrero, Senior Specialist, Marine Conservation, for Hampshire and Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust added,
“We have had our most successful year since we started working on seagrass restoration, collecting and planting three times as much seed as we ever have before.
“This has helped us to really start the process of restoration at scale. And none of this would have been possible without the tireless efforts of our wonderful Solent Seagrass Champions, who help us with everything we do and have already put in 500 hours of voluntary work this year.“
Volunteers contribute record hours to planting and seed preparation
The planting follows an intensive community effort last summer which saw volunteers give over 600 volunteer hours to the largest seed collection Hampshire and Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust has undertaken to date at Seaview and Calshot.
Volunteers also supported seagrass ‘fragment walks’ at Priory Bay, helping to rescue and replant more than 100 seagrass fragments. At a planting preparation workshop held with Project Seagrass at Sea View Yacht Club, volunteers prepared 1,154 transplants for planting by attaching bamboo pins to the seagrass rhizomes, an important restoration method to increase survival success.
Experimental trials aim to refine future restoration methods
This spring also saw experimental trials, comparing germination success between subtidal and intertidal seed populations collected from Isle of Wight meadows, helping to refine methods for future large-scale restoration.
Project aims to plant equivalent of nine football pitches across the Solent
On the Isle of Wight, this year’s work means that more than four football pitches have been planted in total, while the northern shores of the Solent have seen an area almost the size of a football pitch planted in the last two years. The Solent Seascape Project is aiming to plant the equivalent of 9 football pitches overall.
As the UK’s first large-scale seascape restoration initiative, the Solent Seascape Project brings together multiple organisations to restore and reconnect habitats including seagrass meadows, saltmarsh, seabird nesting sites and oyster reefs across the Solent.
Find out more about the project on the website where you’ll also find volunteer opportunities, including seagrass seed collection this summer, and other ways to get involved.
East Head Impact and the Endangered Landscapes & Seascapes Programme (ELSP), managed by the Cambridge Conservation Initiative and funded by Arcadia, support the Solent Seascape Project.
News shared by Rebecca on behalf of Blue Marine Foundation. Ed
