FROM THE FIELD | DE Underwater Grass

Explore the latest from Delaware's SAV Projects

Updates, stories, and field highlights from our team and volunteers.

Mapping the Future: Launching Our Indian River Bay SAV Pilot Project

Written by DNREC Aquatic Habitat Monitoring & Restoration Scientist, Abigail Young If you take a look at a map of southern Delaware, tucked right between the bustling shores of Rehoboth and Bethany Beach, you’ll find Indian River Bay. As a core part of Delaware's inland bay system, it's fed by the Indian River at its western end and connected directly to the Atlantic Ocean via the Indian River Inlet. But if you were to dive down and look at the bay’s floor right now, you’d fi

kaylaclauson

Jun 295 min read

2025 SAV Intern Experience with DNREC

Written by 2025 DNREC SAV Program Intern, Lillian Turner Spending the summer exploring the eastern shore, surveying underwater grass beds, and gaining fieldwork skills was the best way I could’ve spent this summer. I have always had a love for the eastern shore and being on the water- I never imagined it could be my job to enjoy those things. The DNREC Submerged Aquatic Vegetation Internship was an extremely useful experience for personal and professional development. The DNR

kaylaclauson

Feb 253 min read

Welcome to Our Blog: Among the Grasses

Hi everyone, and welcome to Among the Grasses . This was my idea to share SAV stories with everyone from a more intimate/detailed level....

kaylaclauson

Oct 8, 20254 min read

Blog: Among the Grasses

Our favorite kind of office work. 🌿

From boats to waders, our team spends plenty of time monitoring SAV, collecting data, and helping protect Delaware’s underwater habitats.

Turns out, “out of office” is exactly where the work gets done. 🚤

#fieldwork #habitatrestoration #eastcoast

The views above water are pretty nice, but the real magic is what’s happening below.

Big shoutout to @chesbayprogram for having us out at last week’s SAV Workgroup Paddle on the Susquehanna Flats! It was incredible seeing the abundance of SAV growing, including this beautiful bed of Water stargrass (Heteranthera dubia).

Healthy SAV beds provide food and shelter for wildlife, improve water quality, and help keep our aquatic ecosystems thriving.

#WetlandScience #Underwater #EastCoast

Spot the Hydrilla! 👀 🌿

Hydrilla verticillata is an invasive aquatic plant found in Delaware, but it can be tricky to tell apart from other submerged vegetation.

🔍 Look for:
• Whorls of 4–8 leaves
• Tiny serrated leaf edges
• Slightly downward-curving leaves

Interested in learning how to identify even more SAV species? Explore our iNaturalist project, Eyes on SAV Delaware, through the link in our bio!

If you can’t find us, check the nearest waterway. 🌊🌱

Odds are we’re out chasing SAV, collecting data, and spending our days with muddy waders and a creek to explore.

#WetlandScience #Fieldwork

This week, we spent time exploring the Nanticoke River, the largest tributary of the Chesapeake Bay on the Delmarva Peninsula. During our time on the water, we documented the presence of SAV, identified the species we encountered, and observed the diverse fish and wildlife that rely on these underwater habitats.

Every survey our team conducts helps us better understand the ecological health and function of Delaware’s waterways while providing valuable information to support future conservation and restoration efforts.

Swipe through to see some of the species and sights we encountered in the field! ☀️🛶

#Nanticoke #DelawareWaters #Fieldwork

Seagrass summer vibes 🌊🌿

A few snapshots from our Indian River Bay Pilot Project! Be sure to check out our latest blog post to learn more about the work happening behind the scenes.

#DelawaresSAV #DelawareWaters #HabitatRestoration

🌿 Last SAV Seekers Training of the Season!

Want to help protect Delaware’s underwater grasses while spending time outdoors? Join us on Friday, July 10 at the @udelaware Hugh R. Sharp Campus in Lewes for our final SAV Seekers Part 1 Training of the season!

You’ll learn how to identify Delaware’s SAV, collect valuable monitoring data, and contribute to conservation efforts across the state. Whether you enjoy kayaking, wading, or simply exploring Delaware’s waterways, this is a great way to turn your time on the water into meaningful community science.

📅 Registration closes July 8, and we still have a few spots available!

🔗 Register here: https://www.delawaresav.org/event-details/sav-seekers-training-part-1-2

Can’t make it? You can still get involved! Check out our free Delaware SAV ID Guide, webinars, and other resources on our website, and upload your underwater plant observations to iNaturalist through our “All Eyes on SAV – Delaware” project.

Every observation helps us better understand and protect Delaware’s underwater habitats. 🌱

Pick an emoji, follow the line, and uncover how SAV helps our Delaware waterways!

We built a little underwater maze just for you. Swipe through and follow your path to the very end to see exactly how SAV functions to keep our local creeks, rivers, and bays healthy.

Which path did you end up on? Drop your emoji in the comments! 👇

#DelawareWaterways #SAV

A glimpse into two very different perspectives 🌿👀

From stem lengths to species observations, every measurement helps us better understand and protect these important habitats.

#SAVSeekers #SubmergedAquaticVegetation #CitizenScience #DelawareWaters

Personality quiz but make it ✨aquatic ✨

You have your own vibe just like these SAV have their own vibe and role to support countless species through Delawares waterways!

Swipe to see which one sounds most like you!

Interested in learning how to ID? Join us for one of our upcoming opportunities to learn more at delawaresav.org/volunteer

A few of our favorite colors ��🌿

From winding streams and underwater meadows to days spent in the field, nature’s palette never disappoints.

Inspired by what you see? Visit the link in our bio to learn more about SAV and how you can get involved through volunteer opportunities.

From our bays and marshes to your Memorial Day weekend plans, we hope you find time to enjoy and appreciate the waterways around you. Healthy SAV beds provide shelter, improve water quality, and support the life beneath the surface that keeps our ecosystems thriving.

Happy Memorial Day from the DeSSAV team! ☀️🌱🇺🇸

Registration for our next Delaware SAV Seeker Training is now open! 🌿

Thanks to support from @destateparks, join us at @avstatepark to learn more about submerged aquatic vegetation (SAV), why it matters in our Delaware waterways, and how you can get involved in community science monitoring efforts!

📍 Location: Auburn Valley State Park Pavilion, 1165 Yorklyn Rd, Hockessin, DE 19707
📅 Date: June 17th, 2026 9AM - 3PM
⏰ Registration Deadline: June 12th, 2026

🔗 Register online using the link in our bio! Or visit https://www.delawaresav.org/volunteer for more event details.

Our team visited the Delaware Fish and Wildlife’s Assawoman Wildlife Area to monitor the growth of Ruppia maritima and collect water quality data, helping us better understand the conditions that support these important aquatic habitats.

Right now, the Ruppia beds are at Stage 2, characterized by early inflorescence development— small, green reproductive structures that remain fully enclosed within the sheath.

Monitoring these growth stages helps us track seasonal changes, plant health, and overall environmental conditions influencing SAV growth throughout Delaware’s coastal waterways. 🌿

You can check out our Ruppia reproductive guide on our website on our resources page!

*all work and access was granted by Delaware fish and wildlife*

#DelawareSAV #AquaticEcology #DelawareWaterways #SAVMonitoring

Submerged aquatic vegetation plays an important role in healthy aquatic ecosystems— but today, we’re getting to know these species a little differently.

Swipe through to learn about some SAV species, their habitats, and their personalities along the way! 🌊

Interested in learning more about the SAV species found in our Delaware waterways? Visit DelawareSAV.org/how-to-id 🌿

Last week, we participated in the City of Dover’s Community Stormwater Day to connect with the community and talk about how stormwater impacts our waterways. 🌧️🌱

From nutrient runoff to sediment input, what happens on land directly shapes the health of our aquatic systems. We shared how submerged aquatic vegetation (SAV) responds to these changes and why improving water quality is key to supporting healthy habitats.

Events like this are a great reminder that protecting our waterways starts with everyday choices. Big thanks to everyone who stopped by to learn more, craft, and chat with us!🌿

Interested in getting involved? Visit DelawareSAV.org to learn more about our work and volunteer opportunities.

#SAV #WaterQuality #Delaware #HabitatRestoration #CommunityScience

This week we kicked off our first SAV Seekers training! Over 20 participants joined us for part 1 of a 2 part training at the @delnature.abbotts. We were able to cover SAV basics, identification, and how to collect data. Part 2 will get trainees on the water to test using equipment and put their new SAV ID skills to the test.

Interested? Stay tuned for more updates and training opportunities! Check out DelawareSAV.org/volunteer for more details.

A day in the field at Indian River Bay 🌊

We’re surveying the bay to establish baseline conditions and deploying continuous monitoring equipment to track water quality over time. By pairing bathymetry with real-time data on light, temperature, and salinity, we’re building a clearer picture of what this habitat can support.

That information is critical as we work toward restoring eelgrass (Zostera marina) in our inland bays. If we want restoration to succeed, we need to understand the system first: where conditions are suitable, where they’re not, and why.

This is the groundwork that turns restoration from trial-and-error into something strategic!

#SAV #Eelgrass #IndianRiverBay #WaterQuality #HabitatRestoration #Seagrass

SAV doesn’t have LinkedIn… but if it did, it would be insufferable.

In reality, these plants are quietly doing some of the most important work in our waterways—clearing the water, stabilizing the bottom, and raising the next generation of aquatic life.

Let’s go underwater 👇

How many different SAV species can you spot?

Take a guess before the reveal…

👀

There are 5 species hiding in this clip—did you catch them all?

Learning to identify submerged aquatic vegetation isn’t just a fun challenge, it’s how we start to understand what’s happening beneath the surface. Different species tell us different things about water quality, habitat, and overall ecosystem health.

That’s exactly what we focus on in SAV Seekers—training volunteers to recognize these plants, collect real data, and build a clearer picture of our waterways across Delaware.

Once you start noticing the differences, you won’t stop seeing them.

#SAVSeekers #SubmergedAquaticVegetation #CitizenScience #WaterQuality #DelawareWaters #UnderwaterWorld

Big update for 2026 monitoring:

All macroalgae will now be classified as SAV to simplify data collection

No more confusing distinctions—if it’s green, it’s in!!

…..................

Yeah, no.. April fools! 😄

SAV are rooted, flowering plants—macroalgae are not
(and that difference matters for water quality and habitat). Only true SAV stabilizes sediments, improves water clarity, and builds habitat from the bottom up—macroalgae doesn’t fill that role.

Freshwater mussels and submerged aquatic vegetation (SAV) are two powerful natural filters working beneath the surface of Delaware’s waterways. Mussels remove algae and suspended particles from the water, while SAV stabilizes sediments, improves water clarity, and provides important habitat for fish and other aquatic life.

Within DNREC’s Division of Watershed Stewardship, the SAV and Habitat & Biology Programs work statewide to map, monitor, and study both SAV and freshwater mussel populations. These efforts help us understand where these habitats occur, how they interact, and what conditions allow them to thrive.

The SAV Seekers volunteer monitoring program also contributes to these efforts by collecting data on SAV and aquatic invertebrates, including freshwater mussels, helping inform larger mapping and monitoring efforts across the state.

Together, mussels and SAV show that healthy waterways start from the bottom up!

#FreshwaterMussels #SubmergedAquaticVegetation #WatershedStewardship #DeSSAV #WaterQuality #AquaticHabitats #DelawareWaters #HabitatRestoration #DNREC

Happy First Day of Spring!

Today marks the spring equinox, when day and night are nearly equal and daylight hours begin to outpace the dark. While many terrestrial plants are just beginning to bloom, changes are happening beneath the surface as well.

As water temperatures rise and days grow longer, SAV begins its annual growth cycle. Plants start emerging and developing early shoots that will expand into underwater meadows in the months ahead.

Spring also marks the start of another SAV monitoring season, when researchers and volunteers head into the field to track where these important habitats are growing across Delaware’s waterways.

Be sure to follow along on our monitoring journeys this upcoming season!

Check out our volunteer page to learn how to get involved at https://www.delawaresav.org/volunteer

#FirstDayOfSpring #SpringEquinox #SubmergedAquaticVegetation #SAV #DelawareWaters #AquaticHabitats #WatershedStewardship #FieldSeason

Follow along for a behind-the-scenes look at our SAV Seed & Research Facility during lab reset day.

Right now we’re running germination and early growth trials for Delaware’s most abundant brackish SAV species, Ruppia maritima.

Each trial tests different salinity conditions and elevated temperatures that mimic typical spring conditions in Delaware waters—when Ruppia begins to germinate, grow, and flower.

Our first trial produced plants reaching up to 40 cm tall, with early signs of reproductive shoots already forming.

Lots more to learn as the trials continue. 🌱🌊

🌿 Species Spotlight: Potamogeton perfoliatus

Also known as clasping-leaf pondweed or redhead grass, this species is a great example of how learning plant names helps you truly see SAV in the field.

Its leaves fully wrap around the stem; a clasping attachment that makes it one of the easier pondweeds to identify once you know what to look for. And the name “redhead grass” reflects its ecological connection to the Aythya americana, a diving duck that feeds on submerged aquatic vegetation.

The more we learn to confidently identify species like this, the stronger our monitoring and restoration efforts become.

Want to put that knowledge to work?

✔ Join SAV Seekers and help collect standardized data across Delaware
✔ Upload your finds to our iNaturalist project to support species tracking

Check out opportunities to volunteer and get involved at delawaresav.org/volunteer

#SAVSeekers #SubmergedAquaticVegetation #CitizenScience #SpeciesSpotlight #KnowYourWaters

Last year, a DNREC SAV intern helped tell the story of SAV in Delaware through this blog post and it’s still just as relevant today. 🌿

This work is part of a broader, collaborative effort through the DeSSAV Workgroup to build workforce development pathways in coastal and estuarine science. Our interns don’t work in silos, they collaborate across agencies, nonprofits, and academic partners, contributing to real projects that support SAV monitoring, restoration, and outreach statewide.

It’s been exciting to see how these partnerships create hands-on learning opportunities while moving meaningful work forward. And if this kind of experience sounds like something you (or a student you know) would be interested in, Delaware Sea Grant is hiring an intern this year.

🔗 Read the blog here: https://www.delawaresav.org/post/2025-sav-intern-experience-with-dnrec

🔗 Explore internship opportunities from @deseagrant here: https://www.udel.edu/content/dam/udelImages/ceoe/desg/2026InternJobDescription.pdf

#SAV #WorkforceDevelopment #InternshipOpportunity #CoastalCareers #DelawareScience #DeSSAV

🌿 Feature Friday: Diving into Delaware’s Only Brackish SAV Bed

Meet TreVaughn, a PhD candidate at the University of Delaware studying Ruppia maritima, also known as widgeon grass, the only true brackish SAV species in Delaware with abundant beds.

You’ve likely seen it in our inland bays with thread-like leaves, branching stems, and those distinctive coiled flowering stalks in summer.

But his research goes deeper than what we can see! As a doctoral student in Jennifer Biddle’s lab, he studies the microscopic organisms living on SAV — the important underwater grasses that support fish, crabs, waterfowl, and water quality here in Delaware.

His work includes:
• Studying how microbes generate energy underwater
• Conducting a statewide census of Delaware’s submerged aquatic vegetation
• Running lab experiments to test how SAV microbiomes respond to physical stress — like boat activity, heat, and plant damage

When SAV dries out during low tide or gets torn up by propellers and storms, it doesn’t just affect the plant. It also changes the tiny microbial community living on its surface.

These microbes aren’t just passengers — they influence plant health, stress response, and overall ecosystem resilience.

TreVaughn is working to understand whether those microbial shifts help SAV recover… or make it more vulnerable.

Why does that matter?

Because disturbance is increasing. And if we want to protect or restore SAV, we need to understand not just the plant — but the biological partnerships that support it.

Delaware may not have expansive eelgrass meadows like our neighbors, but our brackish systems are dynamic, resilient, and scientifically important.

Proud to see this kind of science happening right here in our backyard!

#DelawareSAV #RuppiaMaritima #UnderwaterGrasses #MarineScience #UniversityOfDelaware #LewesDE

If they don’t appreciate a good SAV pun…
are they even the one?

Tag someone who’s wild (celery) about clean water.

Happy Valentines Day! ❤️

Common names are doing their best...
This is why scientific names matter!

Part 1 of SAV names that are lying to you

What other plant names can you think of that don't "add up?" 🤔

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