Management of Charlotte Harbor Aquatic Preserve topic of MCA meeting
Charlotte Harbor Aquatic Preserves environmental specialist Arielle Taylor-Manges was the guest speaker at the Matlacha Civic Association meeting March 16 at the Matlacha Park Arts building.
Manges, who has been with the Charlotte Harbor Aquatic Preserve for approximately 10 years, gave a presentation on the management of the preserve. The aquatic preserve program, she said, encompasses 4 million acres of protected, submerged land, including Florida’s 42 aquatic preserves. An estuary, such as Matlacha Pass, is defined by the presence of both fresh and saltwater.
Estuaries, known as the cradles of the sea, she said, are very important because they are nutrient-rich protected areas, where various animals and habitats converge for different life cycles.
“It takes a village to take care of an estuary, or an aquatic preserve, so we have a lot of partners that we work with in terms of land management,” said Manges.
Among these partners are the national Wildlife Rescue; state parks such as Cayo Costa; Lee, Charlotte and Sarasota counties; the Coastal & Heartland National Estuary Partnership; the Nature Conservancy; Florida Fish & Wildlife; the Sanibel-Captiva Conservation Foundation; the water management districts, as well as universities and high schools.
Specific preserve management includes monitoring, such as sea grass, and water quality and the review of any permanent activities that occur within the preserves. They also keep track of any invasive or exotic species that have the potential to impact the preserves.
There are five water quality sites in Matlacha Pass, she said — three continuous and two volunteer. There are five islands monitored monthly, or when they are active, such as nesting season.
Sea grass beds, she said, are used as a proxy for water quality and as a measurement of the water column.
“Sea grass is a flowering plant, so in theory as far deep as the grass will grow is how far the light can go in the water column,” Manges said.
Because sea grasses need light, she explained, rainfall can effect the grasses’ growth and well being. In years where there is higher rainfall, there is less sea grass. This, she said, they assume is either because less light is in the water after rain, or it could be due to less salinity.
“We can most likely assume it’s an interaction with the availability of light,” Manges said.
Prop scaring, from boat propellers, extends a continuous blow to sea grass. A single prop scar can take 5 or 10 years to recover, she said, depending on how bad the scaring is or how much the sediment was disturbed. Typically, in our area, sea grass will survive in around 6 feet of water, she said. The average depth in Matlacha Pass is 2 to 4 feet. This can be very detrimental to sea grass over time.
If prop scaring continues, she said, much of the local sea grass would eventually be lost.
“Prop scaring is a huge impact to sea grasses,” Manges said.
Protecting local sea grasses is important due to the role they play in housing and sheltering marine life and improving water quality. They provide over 90 percent of the food source for commercial and recreational fisheries and improve water quality through the stabilization of sediments but also by sequestering nutrients.
In 2009, Manges said, a law was passed to fine anyone up to $1,000 who knowingly damages sea grass in an aquatic preserve.
If you run a boat aground, she said, you should turn off your motor, trim the motor and pull or push yourself off that shallow area.
For more information on the Charlotte Harbor Aquatic Preserve, visit:
https://floridadep.gov/rcp/aquatic-preserve/content/charlotte-harbor-aquatic-preserves.
To reach PAULETTE LeBLANC / pleblanc@breezenewspapers.com, please email