TeamSeagrass Orientation 2008: looking toward the future

TeamSeagrass gathered today to celebrate our second anniversary of monitoring, and catch up about our shores and seagrasses.
And here are the happiest seagrassers on the team, their name tags say it all.Volunteers came early to set up the registration counter, arrange the gifts, put up the posters, and do up an amazing guestbook! Thanks everyone who helped!
The fantastic guestbook (done by Siti Nurbaya) was really too inviting to ignore and we enthusiastically shared our thoughts about being on the Team (see the next post)...while the rest of us are busy putting last minute touches to the programme.

After Ria does a quick introduction to our shores and threats to them as well as a brief history of TeamSeagrass, Siti presented more of the Science of Seagrasses.Including some preliminary findings.In order to better understand the trends, we will have to monitor for at least three years. We're nearly there!Then it was time for the Seagrass Game Show! Where we learn more about seagrasses and monitoring in a fun way. Here's some of us figuring out how to tell sediments.The highlight of the Game was the 10m dash where for the first time, lines are allowed to cross!We practice measuring ST grass (made out of strips of newspapers...haha). It's much easier learning with this truly dry run.
And it was fabulous that the more experienced Team members took much time to share and explain the processes. Thank you!

Then we had a quick brainstorming session to think about the future of TeamSeagrass.There was a team to discuss research issues.And several other teams discussing TeamSeagrass' identity and outreach issues.The teams were so intent on discussion that we had a hard time getting them to break for tea!After a quick and yummy tea break (thank you Dawn for arranging it!) we shared some of our thoughts.Some had really impressive charts! Many good ideas were shared and we hope to be able to do more for our beloved seagrasses in the coming year! More details will be sent to team members via the mailing list.

Thanks to everyone for coming, sharing and supporting our seagrasses! See you all at the next monitoring session.

Special thanks to those who came to help earlier: Charmaine, Dawn, Andy, Gaytri, Jerald, Marcus Tay and Marcus Ng, Siti Nurbaya, Vyna; and all the experienced seagrassers who came and shared with the newer ones.

Sharing about the TeamSeagrass experience

Here's some wonderful thoughts shared about being on the Team!


Why Seagrasses are so Joyful!

Sharing the funniest moments...


And some really artistic thoughts...

Special wishes from our friends from Schering Plough who take care of the seagrasses at Tuas.
and more...

Thank you everyone!

TeamSeagrass Orientation 27 Sep (Sat) 2-6pm

Have you wanted to make a difference for our shores? Curious about these wacky people who work on our seagrass meadows?

Want to get a glimpse of some of their adventures?And find out more about what actually happens during a monitoring session?Well, the best time to do this is at the annual TeamSeagrass Orientation session. It happens only once a year!

There'll be a quick introduction of our seagrasses and monitoring methods, aimed especially at those who have just joined the team. We'll also have a quick look at some of our past adventures throughout this year.

It's also PARTY TIME! A chance for all of us to meet one another.

TeamSeagrass Orientation
Date: 27 Sep (Sat)
Time: 2-6pm
Venue: Function Room, Botany Centre

Location map
http://www.sbg.org.sg/tanglincore/tanglincore.asp
How to get there
http://www.sbg.org.sg/visitorinfo/openinghours.asp

Not on the Team yet? Just join us!

If you've always wanted to join TeamSegrass, now is a good time to do so. You'll get a proper introduction to the seagrasses and to the Team!

How to join? Simply email these details
(a) your full name
(b) your age
(c) your email address
(d) your contact number
(e) any previous experience
to Ria at hello@wildsingapore.com, please put "TeamSeagrass" in your subject header.

Please do read the FAQs before you sign up for more details about the programme.

See you at the Orientation!

3rd Monitoring session in Tuas

Hello Teamseagrass members,

This is reporting live from Schering-Plough coastline. We have just conducted our 3rd monitoring session on 16th Aug 2008. We are very glad that the tide this part of the year is in the evening, which means we could spend more time on the coastline walk.

As usual, the monitoring session started with a little refresher on the monitoring technique. We had a new quadrat to use too =) This time round we had a huge turn out from our Human Resource Team! Thanks to you guys =)

The majority of the seagrass (which is 99.9999%) found in the Tuas coastline is Halophila Ovalis. However, during this monitoring session, we observed that there were a few broken tapered grass (I think it is Thaslassia hemprichii) washed up shore. We tried to search for the tapered grass further offshore but we could not find any. Ria commented that they could be much much further off shore that’s why we did not manage to find any.

And as reported by Ria there was a huge bloom of the stiff green seaweed which covered most of the exposed shore. Quite irritating actually as it covered most of the exposed shore which makes walking difficult but I think the marine creatures will love them since they provide food and most importantly shelter for them to hide from us – the hyperactive marine creature mountain tortoise participants.

After 30 mins of monitoring, we were off to the more interesting coastline walks. This time round, we had a photographer-wannabe with us – Mr Samuel Tan and he did manage to take numerous photos on the beautiful marine creatures we have. Here are some of his photos:

Crabs are always found in everyone’s camera when they visit the Tuas coastline. But you can’t blame them as there are just too numerous of them on the coastline. They are always the first creature to greet you on the Tuas coastlines – you just can’t miss them. Don’t you find that the crab on the right side looks like a spider especially the color combination.

There is another photo that I like as the eyes are like so mesmerizing though I do not know what marine creature it is. Let me make a smart guess – a type of SNAIL?

Among other marine creatures that we saw included a tiny mudskipper which was spotted by one of our observant team members borrowing in the sand. Many fishes and a starfish were also spotted by many of our members. I must say they are really getting good in observing these creatures.

Soon it getting dark and we had to conclude the Seagrass and coastline monitoring session. Glad to say we do have another evening session in December and hope that we can spot more interesting marine creature.

TeamSeagrass is Two: celebrating two years of seagrass monitoring

Yes, TeamSeagrass will be TWO! And to celebrate our anniversary, we're having a brand new team badge.
Two dugongs for two years of hard work for our seagrass meadows. If you love dugongs, you should love seagrasses. And TeamSeagrass sure love dugongs and seagrasses and our shores!

The badge will be launched at our TeamSeagrass Orientation on 27 Sep (Sat). Stocks are limited, so if you want to be sure to get one, come for our fun and meaningful session on seagrassy stuff!

If you've always wanted to join TeamSegrass, don't hesitate any longer!

How to join? Simply email these details
(a) your full name
(b) your age
(c) your email address
(d) your contact number
(e) any previous experience
to Ria at hello@wildsingapore.com, please put "TeamSeagrass" in your subject header.

Please do read the FAQs before you sign up for more details about the programme.

See you at the Orientation!

Young seagrassers update with fact sheets on Labrador

The intrepid young seagrassers at Labrador have just uploaded a fact sheet on Spoon seagrasses Halophila ovalis and common seaweed Ulva. Go have a look!

International Seagrass Biology Workshop

Hello Seagrassers!

Greetings from Bamfield, a lovely little township in Barkley Sound, Vancouver Island, Canada.

I'm at the Bamfield Marine Sciences Centre for the 8th International Seagrass Biology Workshop - a gathering of seagrass scientists, managers and overall enthusiasts of all things marine and flowering :)

Its been an intense few days here at ISBW8, and it'll be way too much to write it all down here, so I'm just gonna put up some pretty photos for your eyes to feast on. I'll be sharing more on ISBW8 during the TeamSeagrass Orientation, so be there or be square!

Enjoy!

Bamfield by Day - looking out into Barkley Sound
Welcome to the 8th ISBW! :)
Bamfield by dusk - the town is set on two sides of an inlet and the only way to get across is by boat!
Field Trip Day! - Siti and the ever-trendy orange life vest.
Navigating around Barkley Sound and the Broken Island Group - part of the Pacific Rim National Park Reserve.
We visited a huge Eelgrass (Zostera marina) bed. Probably the most dominant species of seagrass in temperate areas. There are huge beds of Z. marina in the area as well as further down South in Puget Sound - so much that eelgrass is synonymous with seagrass here in the Pacific Northwest.
Top: Phyllospadix sp. a pretty special and hardy seagrass whose roots can cling on to ROCKS. Yes, ROCKS! We found these in a tidepool on a rocky beach. Below: Phyllospadix flowers in foreground.
The anemones get pretty big in this part of the world and very colourful!
For more photos, visit the ISBW website at: http://isbw.seagrassonline.org/