What is the extent of boater damage to seagrasses?
Damage is widespread throughout Redfish Bay. In the summer of 2005, Department biologists looked at 35 sites totaling over 2 linear miles of bay bottom in the state scientific area. Prop scarring was found in over half of those sites, with some areas showing higher concentration than others. Waters that average three feet or deeper in the summer months have minimal scarring. However, large expanses of the flats are not that deep. As the number of scars in a given area increase, the more bare bay bottom is exposed. More bare area allows wave action to suspend more sediment, resulting in increased turbidity and less light penetration to the grasses. Areas with multiple scars create an environment that may adversely affect seagrass growth in an area much wider than each individual scar.
