Scientists discover ‘world’s largest’ seagrass forest by strapping cameras to sharks
In an attempt to measure the extent of seagrass meadows in the Bahamas,
Researchers attached cameras and trackers to the dorsal fins of tiger sharks to give them access to hours of ocean floor footage.
The data they collected revealed what the researchers say is the world’s largest known seagrass ecosystem
Stretching across up to 92,000 sq km (35,000 sq miles) of Caribbean seabed.
This discovery extends the total known global seagrass coverage by more than 40%, according to the study published in Nature Communications on 1 November.
Seagrass meadows have long been under-researched – estimates of their total global area range wildly from 160,000 sq km to 1.6m sq km.
Meadows in deep or cloudy water cannot always be spotted by planes or satellites,
The researchers hope their discovery will mean better protections for seagrass in the Bahamas.
Which is threatened by dredging for coastal development as well as a push to mine for aragonite
Seagrass, and other coastal ecosystems, are “probably one of the best allies and assets that we have in terms of naturally trying to mitigate the effects of climate change.