100,000 seagrass seeds collected for Solent restoration

Volunteers collect more than 100,000 seagrass seeds to restore the Solent

Hampshire and Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust volunteers have collected more than 100,000 seagrass seeds for a long-term restoration project in the Solent.

Volunteers collecting seagrass seeds at Calshot Image: Advertiser and Times / Hampshire & Isle of Wight Wildlife TrustOriginal source

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Volunteers have helped collect more than 100,000 seagrass seeds from the Solent as part of a long-term effort to restore one of the UK’s rarest marine habitats.

Hampshire and Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust organised low-tide collection sessions at Calshot in Hampshire and Seaview on the Isle of Wight, where volunteers waded and snorkelled through shallow water to gather mature seed-bearing shoots.

Seagrass meadows provide shelter for marine wildlife, improve water quality, store carbon and help protect coastlines from erosion. The Wildlife Trust says the UK has lost up to 90 per cent of its seagrass over the last century through pressures including pollution, dredging, disease and coastal development.

The seeds collected this summer will be processed and used in future restoration work. The programme has been working to bring seagrass back to the Solent since 2021.