Seagrasses of the Coastal Bend

Shoal Grass.jpg (4845 bytes) SHOALGRASS (HALODULE WRIGHTII)
  • Dominant species in upper Laguna Madre
  • Primary food source for redhead ducks
  • An early colonizer species of impacted areas
Widgeon Grass.jpg (5596 bytes) WIDGEON GRASS (RUPPIA MARITIMA)
  • Found interspersed in shoalgrass beds
  • Provides a major food source for migratory waterfowl
  • Has a wide tolerance of salinities
Turtle Grass.jpg (6250 bytes) TURTLE GRASS (THALASSIA TESTUDINUM)
  • Colonizes deeper waters of high salinities
  • Grazed upon by the endangered green seaturtle
  • Climax species indicative of low impact areas
Manatee Grass.jpg (4295 bytes) MANATEE GRASS
  • Occurs on deep waters
  • Grazed upon by seaturtles
  • Climax species
Clover Grass.jpg (6286 bytes) CLOVER GRASS
  • Occurs in higher salinity waters
  • Found interspersed in Shoalgrass and Manatee Grass beds
  • Invader species