A Collective Effort to Help Eelgrass Adapt to Climate Change
Articles/Websites
Grades9, 10, 11, 12, APBiology, Earth and Space Sciences
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Provided by The Nature Conservancy
What it is
- This article and video discuss current research studying the resiliency of different eelgrass populations in a changing climate in hopes of restoring eelgrass populations along the coast of Long Island.
- Students will learn about this effective carbon sink, which provides an essential habitat for marine species and many ecosystem services, and how human impacts threaten it.
Teaching tips
Positives
- This article includes examples of similar research related to assisted migration and geographic variation in species, providing excellent options for further study.
- The video describes the issues facing eelgrass succinctly and shows the duties of a marine science researcher.
- Since eelgrass is an important carbon sink, this could lead to a conversation about prioritizing ecosystems for protection and restoration in a rapidly changing climate.
Additional Prerequisites
- Students should be familiar with basic ecological terms and concepts such as species range, migration, tolerance, growing conditions, genetic diversity, carbon sinks, and different geographic populations of species.
Differentiation
- Have students watch the video in pairs before reading the article, and have them write down and discuss two things they would like to learn more about.
- Consider reading the article as a class with a map of Long Island pulled up on the board and stop after every few paragraphs to discuss.
- Ask students if they think common gardens are an effective solution for finding heat-tolerant eelgrass variants and if researchers could use citizen scientists to help with eelgrass restoration.
From the scientist review
This resource from The Nature Conservancy highlights work to restore eelgrass, a foundational species, along the coast of Long Island, New York. The resource expresses that eelgrass is at risk from climate change and is, at the same time, a powerful carbon sink that is a vital part of mitigating climate change. This resource is exceptionally well-sourced, with links to the project report and peer-reviewed articles. This resource is recommended for teaching.
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