Website

http://www.tampabay.wateratlas.usf.edu/

Region(s)

SW

Summary

Seagrass ecology, water quality, water clarity

Parameters

Seagrass and macroalgae percent cover by species (Braun-Blanquet), canopy height (cm), stem density (m^-2), epiphyte density, sediment type, light profiles, water temperature, salinity, Secchi depth, color, chlorophyll-a concentration, and turbidity

Notes

These sampling locations are distributed throughout the bay. Partners coordinated by the Tampa Bay Estuary Program as part of the Tampa Bay Interagency Seagrass Monitoring Program: Southwest Florida Water Management District (SWFWMD), Pinellas County, Manatee County, the City of Tampa, the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, and the Fish and Wildlife Research Institute

Application

To provide scientists, resource managers, legislators, and other stakeholders a summary of the status of seagrasses in Tampa Bay, Florida.

Publications

Report: https://myfwc.com/research/habitat/seagrasses/projects/active/simm/simm-reports/

Start

1982

End

Current

Frequency

Annual

Method

1,550 quadrats located every 10–25 m on approximately 62 transects, at 21 fixed locations.

Discontinuity

Data Location

https://www.tbeptech.org/data/gis-data/31-tbep-tech-databases , and TampaBay.WaterAtlas.org https://tampabay.wateratlas.usf.edu/seagrass-monitoring/

Data Format

Access database

Habitats

Submerged Aquatic Vegetation

SEACAR Citation

Tampa Bay Interagency Seagrass Monitoring Program; Tampa Bay Estuary Program (TBEP). (2025). Tampa Bay Seagrass Monitoring. Updated 05/05/2026. Distributed by: SEACAR Data Discovery Interface, Office of Resilience and Coastal Protection, Florida Department of Environmental Protection. https://data.florida-seacar.org/programs/details/565

Alternative Citation

indicates priority attributes