A Marine Biologist at work in the Baltic Sea - Seagrass habitat restoration

This short video shows some more video clips of diving work from my job as a "Luonnonsuojelun asiantuntija", or Nature Conservation Expert in Metsähallitus Parks & Wildlife in Finland. Here, we are collecting shoots of seagrass (Zostera marina) to transplant them to areas where they have suffered due to anchoring by small pleasure craft. We aim to transplant them to bare sand where they were previously recorded and to see if they will grow again. If successful, the bare areas could potentially become seagrass meadows once more. This restoration pilot work is being carried out by Metsähallitus Parks & Wildlife as part of their contribution to the EU-funded LIFE_IP BIODIVERSEA project.
Seagrass is a key species, supporting a diverse habitat of other species as a food source and shelter for invertebrates and juvenile fish. Through its root network, seagrass also traps sand and prevents erosion of seafloor sediments.
This is one of my favourite habitats to dive in the Archipelago Sea. It is shallow and well-lit, typically with clear water. The footage was filmed with a GoPro 7 Black and an Insta360X3 camera, a selfie stick, and an invisible dive case.
Copyright: Kevin O'Brien/Metsähallitus 2024

[@lifesahobby]

Nice work Kevin thanks for sharing.

[@snowcelt]

Thanks man. It's nice to post up something other than hiking stuff for a change.

[@lifesahobby]

@@snowcelt thank you for sharing the work

[@MiriamKennedy]

Hope the valuable work is successful Kevin 😊 Certainly beats a desk job!

[@snowcelt]

@MiriamKennedy Thanks! Me too. It's a lot of work. I was inspired as a kid by Jacques Cousteau and I am lucky to be able to dive and work at sea. 😀

[@craigrobertson6082]

What an awesome job...for both you and the environment. Great stuff. How well does the grass re-grow?

[@snowcelt]

@@craigrobertson6082 Thanks! Simple answer: it depends. Previous experience shows that conditions in the donor population should be as similar as possible to help guarantee transplanting success.