FAQ

No! Eelgrass is a species of aquatic flowering plant, or sea “grass”. It reproduces with pollen and rhizome production and unlike seaweed, eelgrass produces flowers! Seaweed is a type of algae, whereas eelgrass is an aquatic plant equipped with the same attributes as plants on land (pollen, roots, rhizome, and leaves).

Rhizomes are underground plant stems that sprout new shoots and roots! They grow horizontally under the sediment and allow the eelgrass to grow without the use of pollen from another donor plant.

Eelgrass grows close to the shore in shallow waters, but prefers to be fully submerged. Eelgrass needs soft sediment to root, so it grows predominantly in water with muddy and flat sediment.

Seagrasses are unique compared to seaweeds in that they look just like grass on land. They have long, thin bladed that grow in clumps off a single stem, and have fully formed roots and rhizomes under the sediment. Eelgrass grows in meadows and can be found in large groups in shallow waters.

Eelgrass has been spotted all along the Southern and Eastern shores, up along the North Shore and into Cape Breton. Since eelgrass likes to grow in flat, muddy sediment, you can find it along the less rocky and calmer coasts of Nova Scotia where there is less tidal action.

Eelgrass populations are threatened due to a combination of climate change, human development, and water quality. Dredging, changing temperatures, and pollution are all contributing factors to eelgrass decline.

Eelgrass was named after the long, wavy leaves that move through the water – like an eel! It was also named after the American eels that inhabit eelgrass meadows.

Eelgrass is an incredible little plant that actually holds more carbon than the amazon rainforest! It also plays an important role in erosion mitigation by taming wave action, provides ample habitat for some of our most valuable species (lobsters for example)

You can email us at [email protected] or join our iNaturalist page to upload all of your observations!