On the east coast, more than 70 percent of Florida's commercial and recreational fish species spend part of their life in the seagrasses of the Indian River Lagoon. Without our seagrasses we all lose. There'd be diminishing sea life, our water would not be as clean without the seagrass to filter it and Florida would be out billions of dollars without the commercial fishing industry. The Indian River Lagoon estuary is located on the east coast of Florida. It is separated from the Atlantic Ocean by a series of long, sandy barrier islands and connected through five inlets.
Fresh water enters through a variety of small rivers and creeks.
It extends from Jupiter Inlet in Palm Beach County to Ponce de Leon Inlet in Volusia County for about 150 miles. Because of its geographical position, the waters of the Lagoon have a mix of organisms common to both temperate and tropical climates, making it one of the most diverse estuaries in the world. More than 70 percent of Florida's commercial and recreational fish, shellfish and crustaceans, including those that are caught offshore, spend part of their life cycle in the estuary. Seagrasses are the most important component of this diverse estuarine lagoon system supporting the myriad of microscopic plants and animals as well as, recreational, sport and commercially important fish and shellfish. Johnson s Seagrass was added to the Federal threatened species list in 1998.