by red88vette » Fri Mar 23, 2018 2:14 pm
I had checked on line after my last trip about the abundance of seaweed. Here are a few notes I found, I thought they may be interesting to others.
The open sea is like a desert, and sargassum is an oasis in that desert” — Blair Witherington, Research Scientist.
Sargassum is a prime nursery habitat for a diversity of large fish, such as mahi mahi (a.k.a. dorado, dolphin), sailfish, jacks, amberjacks, and turtles, etc.
Where did it come from?
Local experts think this particular bout of Sargassum originated off the coast of South America. When ocean conditions are ripe, pelagic (i.e., living in the open ocean) sargassum can form “islands” a few acres across (3-5 ft. deep). Sargassum can survive a wide range of temperature and salinity; therefore, you’ll find it floating in every ocean except the Antarctic… and (pardon a pun) currently on our shores, plenty of it!
Why so much?
No clear answer! Sargassum reproduction is asexual, which means that every bit of the same species could probably be traced back to its original ancestor; therefore, some consider it the largest organism in the world! Due to totipotency (a cell’s ability to give rise to unlike cells and develop a new organism), when a part breaks away, it’s not the end of it; the fragment drifts and could seemingly reproduce forever. Nonetheless, Sargassum eventually becomes too heavy, less buoyant, and sinks into the deep sea… or goes coastal!
What can be done about it?
Hoteliers and local authorities have been coordinating to remove sargassum from our beaches, either manually, in wheelbarrows, or using different types of heavy machinery. Removing it remains necessary; nonetheless, as this cannot be done without unintended consequences that lead to beach erosion (e.g., removing sargassum removes sand, heavy machinery compacts sand, (this can effect turtles nesting, etc.), making informed decisions about how to manage excess sargassum is equally important – particularly because there is so much we have yet to understand.
2022-Aug, Oct, Dec,
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