Fowlers Beach Eelgrass Restoration Pilot
A Long Island Living Laboratory
COBALT/Team Zostera has identified the College Rocks/Fowlers Beach eelgrass meadow as the leading candidate for a fall 2026 seed-based restoration pilot. The proposed work would place eelgrass (Zostera marina) seeds into approximately one-half acre of shallow, bare or sparsely vegetated gaps within the existing meadow. The goal is to test whether targeted seed addition can help establish new eelgrass and strengthen this important meadow over time.
This pilot builds on a strong 2026 community restoration season. Approximately 27,000 reproductive shoots were collected from five Casco Bay “mother” meadows, with a preliminary estimate of roughly 300,000 seeds expected after processing at Bowdoin College’s Schiller Coastal Studies Center (mid-October). Final viable seed numbers and the exact experimental design will be set once processing is complete. Click here to see the full Pilot Restoration Site 2026 Concept Note.
Why Fowlers Beach?
The site offers a practical test. Adjacent, more productive portions of the same meadow are among the 2026 seed donors. Gaps in the shallower areas have been noted by local observers over roughly the past decade. Existing eelgrass nearby shows that parts of the setting can support Zostera marina, while the pilot will examine whether added seed density improves establishment and persistence in the gaps. A comparison of historical imagery, the 2022 DEP survey, and the July 2026 drone survey will help document change.
What the pilot will test?
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Does targeted seed addition increase seedling establishment, first-summer persistence, and later shoot density compared with unseeded reference plots?
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(Where seed quantities allow) Do different donor sources differ in establishment under similar conditions?
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Which measured conditions—light, sediment, water quality, genetics, microbiome, and seed pathogens—help explain outcomes?
The design will include permanent seeded and reference plots, georeferenced photos, diver counts, and repeat imagery tracked against the 2026 baseline. Success will be measured in stages: seed retention, germination, seedling establishment, first-summer persistence, overwinter survival, second-year shoot density, and eventual spread.
A community living laboratory Fowlers Beach connects land and water stewardship. LICA’s dune restoration work, Oceanside Conservation Trust’s adjacent land protection, the Long Island Historical Society’s knowledge of the island’s past, community volunteers, and COBALT/Team Zostera’s marine science come together here. Stewardship does not stop at the shoreline—dunes, conserved lands, nearshore waters, eelgrass meadows, fisheries, wildlife, and community are parts of the same living system.
Public access makes it easier for island residents to observe and document conditions. Many have already participated in phenology monitoring, seed collection, and processing. Next steps and updates Final site checks, viable seed counts, partner and stakeholder acknowledgements, and the detailed experimental design will follow seed processing. This page will be updated with maps, photographs, restoration progress, opportunities to participate, and what we learn as the seeds are followed through germination, establishment, summer survival, and meadow expansion.
Next steps and updates
Final site checks, viable seed counts, partner and stakeholder acknowledgements, and the detailed experimental design will follow seed processing. This page will be updated with maps, photographs, restoration progress, opportunities to participate, and what we learn as the seeds are followed through germination, establishment, summer survival, and meadow expansion.