St. Joe Bay

In the winter, both the tourists and most of the animals have made themselves scare in the intertidal region of St. Joseph Bay. It’s an entirely different landscape than summer vacationers are used to, and one that can be a challenge if you’re kayaking. Dr. Randall Hughes (FSUCML) and Dan and Debbie VanVleet (Happy Ours) guide us through winter in the bay.

If you want an activity that will take a lot of your time, go out onto your lawn and try to figure out which blades of grass belong to what individual plant. The grass in a salt marsh, like your lawn, is made up of various individuals, each with different characteristics that contribute to the success of a marsh. Dr. Randall Hughes’ new experiment looks at what makes habitat building cordgrass individuals successful.

When David Kimbro looks through his trick-or-treat bag, he doesn’t see candy, he sees oyster shells and periwinkle snails. Can predators trick periwinkles into not destroying marsh cordgrass? Or will they serve as tasty treats for blue crabs? David shares his data.

Things get wet, and we look the cool wild things you’ll see while kayaking the Forgotten Coast. We look at the Forgotten Coast segment of the Florida Circumnavigational Saltwater Paddling Trail.

Stretching from the tip of Cape San Blas to the eastern end of St. George Island, the Forgotten Coast segment of the Florida Circumnavigational Trail passes by large stretches of pristine coastal habitat. If you’ve paddled all or part of this trail, we want to hear your stories! Share them on the “In the Grass, On the Reef” blog.

Dr. Randall Hughes has just concluded a biodiversity experiment in Saint Joseph Bay. She was looking at periwinkle effects on marsh cordgrass, and whether it was better or worse when the grass was found alongside needlerush. The answer could be important in marsh recovery and restoration efforts.

Emily Field FSU Coastal & Marine Lab Several weeks ago, I went to Houston to…