MORRO BAY WATERSHED NATIVE PLANT SERIES: Estuarine and Salt Marsh

Our final post in the Morro Bay Watershed Native Plant series will explore the estuarine and salt marsh plant communities that make up the unique estuarine environment of Morro Bay. Not sure what a plant community is? Take a look at our introductory post to the Morro Bay Native Plant Series, an exploration of our watershed’s diverse native flora! Relationship between the estuary and salt marsh An estuary is a place where freshwater meets the sea. In Morro Bay, the freshwater creeks and streams from our watershed drain into and mix with the salty seawater of the bay. …

Field Updates February 2019: Wet weather, eelgrass restoration, and creek monitoring

March 1, 2019 Posted by Morro Bay National Estuary Program creek stage eelgrass eelgrass restoration eelgrass transplant estuary ISCO sampler MBNEP morro bay morro bay national estuary program Morro Bay rain totals sediment SLO rain totals stage height stream gage stream stage Watershed Stewards Program wet weather SLO Blog Posts Field Updates

A picture from the bridge at our monitoring site on Canet Road, overlooking Chorro Creek. What a difference a week and some good rain storms will do!

Fulfilling our mission to protect and restore the Morro Bay estuary for people and wildlife requires a lot of hard work in the field. At the Estuary Program, that often entails doing research, restoration, and monitoring work out on the estuary and along the creeks that feed into it. Read on to see what we’ve been up to during the past month during this wet weather. Eelgrass February eelgrass restoration details This past month, we have been busy taking advantage of some of the year’s lowest tides to replant eelgrass throughout the estuary. The weather didn’t want to …

Factors That Affect Eelgrass Growth in Morro Bay #4: Sediment and Light Part 2

January 18, 2019 Posted by Morro Bay National Estuary Program eelgrass factors that affect eelgrass growth guest post light levels MBNEP morro bay national estuary program restoration sediment soil chemistry soil composition Blog Posts

Erin Aiello, guest author. Photograph courtesy of Kyle Nessen. Light and soil chemistry study

In the first two blog posts of the Factors that Affect Eelgrass Growth in Morro Bay series, we learned that there are many factors that influence eelgrass growth in estuaries. In this two-part post, PhD candidate Erin Aiello explores the importance of light levels and sediment properties and how they change across the bay. This is the second half of the post; read the first half here. Erin Aiello, Guest Author Erin Aiello is a native of the central coast, having grown up in Cambria. She spent most of her childhood running barefoot through pine forests, which instilled in her an undying …

Factors that Affect Eelgrass Growth in Morro Bay #3: Sediment & Light Differences Part 1

January 11, 2019 Posted by Morro Bay National Estuary Program cal poly cuesta college eelgrass Erin Aiello estuary factors that affect eelgrass growth MBNEP morro bay mycorrhizae sediment sediment chemistry sediment classification sediment sampling Blog Posts Factors That Affect Eelgrass Growth

The illustration above shows hands holding sand on the left and clay on the right.

In the first two blog posts of the Factors that Affect Eelgrass Growth in Morro Bay series, we learned that there are many factors that influence eelgrass growth in estuaries. In this two-part post, PhD candidate Erin Aiello explores the importance of light and sediment properties and how they change across the bay. Erin Aiello, Guest Author Erin Aiello is a native of the central coast, having grown up in Cambria. She spent most of her childhood running barefoot through pine forests, which instilled in her an undying love of nature. Erin received her BS and MS degrees in …

Native Plant Series #6: Estuarine and Salt Marsh

October 26, 2018 Posted by Morro Bay National Estuary Program birds botany estuary mudflat native plants pickleweed salt marsh sediment state park marina suaeda californica wetland ecology Blog Posts Native Plants

Our final post in this series will explore the estuarine and salt marsh plant communities that make up the unique estuarine environment of Morro Bay. Not sure what a plant community is? Take a look at our introductory post to the Morro Bay Native Plant Series, an exploration of our watershed’s diverse native flora! An estuary is a place where freshwater meets the sea. In Morro Bay, the freshwater creeks and streams from our watershed drain into and mix with the salty seawater of the bay. The mixing of freshwater and seawater creates a unique and productive environment …

Field Updates January 2018

February 9, 2018 Posted by Morro Bay National Estuary Program drought eelgrass estuary estuary program field MBNEP monitoring morro bay rainfall sediment Blog Posts

Fulfilling our mission to protect and restore the Morro Bay estuary for people and animals requires a lot of hard work in the field. At the Estuary Program, that often means spending time doing research and monitoring work out on the water. Read on to see what our staff and volunteers have been up to during the first month of 2018! Eelgrass Monitoring We started the new year by monitoring the eelgrass we transplanted in March and July of 2017. With the help of Cal Poly, including graduate student Erin Aiello, we have been monitoring these plots regularly …

Join the Morro Bay Rain Gauge Network

November 3, 2017 Posted by Morro Bay National Estuary Program 1995 rains erosion estuary morro bay morro bay national estuary program precipitation rain rainfall sediment sedimentation Blog Posts

In the photograph above, sediment erodes from a dirt road during a rainstorm. This sediment can enter streams and end up in the bay.

Rain is in the forecast, which makes it a perfect time to debut our Rain Gauge Network. This new webpage will display rainfall data from the area surrounding Morro Bay and beyond. Now, we need you to join the network and help us gather that data. Why track rainfall? All precipitation that falls within the Morro Bay watershed can eventually make its way into the estuary through creeks and storm drains. This video shows runoff from roofs, streets, parking lots, etc. entering Morro Bay through a storm drain near the Estuary Program office. Runoff can contain sediment, bacteria, …

From Morro Bay to New Orleans, Estuary Programs Make a Difference

December 16, 2016 Posted by Morro Bay National Estuary Program ANEP erosion land loss morro bay national estuary program new orleans plaquemines parish sediment Blog Posts

Marshland in Plaquemines Parish is disappearing quickly as waves and currents wash land away.

This past week, Executive Director Lexie Bell and Communications & Outreach Coordinator Rachel Pass journeyed all the way to New Orleans, Louisiana. There, they met with staff from the 27 other National Estuary Programs across the country and toured the local Barataria-Terrebonne estuary. National connections Congress established the National Estuary Program in 1987 through the Clean Water Act. There are currently 28 estuaries in the country included in the non-regulatory program. Each of these estuary programs works to address critical water quality issues in their area. National Estuary Programs protect bays big and small. Puget Sound, San Francisco Bay, …

Plant a Tree for the Estuary

April 29, 2016 Posted by Morro Bay National Estuary Program #arborday arbor day birds estuary morro bay estuary sediment sweet springs Blog Posts

A shady view from Sweet Springs Nature Preserve.

The City of Morro Bay’s commitment to planting new trees and caring for our existing trees shows. This June will mark 24 years since Morro Bay was designated as an official Tree City. This is great news for residents and visitors, because trees provide a huge variety of benefits beyond their natural beauty. Trees take in carbon dioxide and release oxygen, helping to improve air quality. Trees provide habitat for local animals—including many of the bird species that call Morro Bay home year-round, and those that migrate through on the Pacific Flyway. Perhaps the most obvious benefit of trees is their …