Skip to content

Volunteer with The Nature Conservancy

Eelgrass Collection

A person snorkels underwater moving through long, floating blades of grass collecting seeds in a coastal eelgrass meadow.
Collecting Eelgrass A volunteer moves through eelgrass meadows in a coastal Virginia bay collecting seeds as part of the largest seagrass restoration project in the world. © Jay Fleming
Viewing
Volunteer Overview

Join TNC and partners as we begin another chapter of the largest seagrass restoration project in the world!

Volunteer snorkelers and water lovers are needed to collect millions of eelgrass seeds offshore of Oyster on Virginia's Eastern Shore. Use the Know Before You Go tab to find additional information about travel and lodging, gear and equipment, and the event cancellation policy.

For more information or to sign up, contact Jennifer Dalke, volunteer program manager, by email jdalke@tnc.org or text 540-335-1302.

Anticipated eelgrass collection workdays will be sent to volunteers in early May. Stay tuned!

Trips will last from 4-5 hours. If you have not collected before, we highly encourage you to sign up for at least two collection days. Collection days are weather dependent, and cancellations may occur. Volunteers will be notified by email—it is the volunteer’s responsibility to determine if a collection date has been cancelled. TNC is not responsible for any lodging, equipment or travel costs incurred by volunteers if a collection date is canceled.

Volunteers will meet at our eelgrass tanks. You can park in the grassy field on the left side of the road just before 6493 Sunnyside Road, Cape Charles, VA 23310. The tanks don’t have a 911 address to use in a GPS, but the address above will get you there.

 

In person work
location
Oyster, VA
Volunteers will meet at the eelgrass tanks in Oyster. 6493 Sunnyside Road, Cape Charles, VA 23310.
date
DATE
Ongoing
Multiple dates and varied times
time
TIME
contact
CONTACT
Jennifer Dalke
Email: jdalke@tnc.org
A man holds a large, thick bundle of eelgrass stands collected from a coastal bay meadow.
Growing Success Starting from a mere remnant, TNC and VIMS have broadcast more than 72 million seeds to help accelerate the natural spread of eelgrass, now covering more than 9,500 acres. © Kyle LaFerriere Photography

Eelgrass (Zostera marina) is a simple seagrass that once thrived in the coastal bays of Virginia. In the early 1930s, a noxious slime mold and the powerful Chesapeake-Potomac Hurricane combined to devastate seagrass meadows in Virginia’s coastal bays. The Seaside Seagrass Community Restoration Program has been conducting highly successful efforts to restore eelgrass in the nearby coastal bays since 1999.

Each spring since 2008, 40 to 60 volunteers have signed on and suited up to collect eelgrass. Over more than a decade nearly 500 volunteers have given 2,175 hours to the effort.

Volunteers collect reproductive shoots containing ripe seeds from the underwater plants. The shoots are measured into water tanks, where the seeds are then cured, separated and prepared for fall planting.

TNC and the Virginia Institute of Marine Science (VIMS) have broadcast more than 72 million seeds into 600 acres to help accelerate the natural spread of eelgrass, which now covers almost 9,000 acres in South, Spider Crab, Hog Island and Cobb Island bays.

The program's success offers a blueprint for restoring and maintaining healthy marine ecosystems around the world.

 

  • Volunteers should be comfortable with snorkeling and being underwater. During low-tide collection, the water will be about waist deep.

    Collection takes place in the seagrass meadows of South Bay off Oyster, Virginia, on the Eastern Shore. Departure times vary based on the tide.

    Volunteers board an open 24’ Carolina skiff to get to the collection site. We can only transport those who are actually collecting.

    Trips typically last from 4-5 hours.

  • The collection schedule is dependent on weather, as well as seed ripening. We try to collect a few days before peak ripening, during peak ripening and a few days after peak ripening, all of which can be difficult to predict. Typically these dates fall during the last week of May into the first week of June.  

    Weather and timing are variable, and trips may change on short notice. It is important that volunteers are flexible. For those who are inexperienced, we highly encourage you to sign up for at least two collection days. 

    It is very important to show up if you sign up so that we can plan transportation and logistics appropriately. Trips typically last from 4-5 hours. If you have not collected before, we highly encourage you to sign up for at least two collection days.

  • It is important to note that volunteers need to be flexible, as collection trips may be cancelled at the last minute due to conditions: choppy water, wind, etc. It is the volunteer’s responsibility to determine if a collection date has been cancelled.

    The Nature Conservancy is not responsible for any lodging, equipment or travel costs incurred if a collection date is cancelled.

    We will send you an email if the workday is cancelled. If you would prefer to have a phone call or text, please contact Jen Dalke at jdalke@tnc.org or 540-335-1302.

  • TNC is not able to provide masks and snorkels; volunteers will need to bring their own along with wetsuits. 

    You need a wetsuit, face mask, snorkel, towel(s) and swim suit. There is no good place to change on the boat or at the meeting location. 

    Bring drinking water and snacks/lunch. If you have special dietary needs, be sure to bring what suits you.  

    The water temperature will be around 65-70 degrees F. You may also prefer some type of water shoe or hood. You are responsible for your personal gear. 70 degrees sounds warm, but after an hour you will get chilly. Dress in layers.

  • There will be on-site training each collection day. Volunteers will be trained on how to identify the reproductive shoots of the eelgrass plant and how to collect and bag them along with other related educational information.

  • The Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel has toll charges. Visit the CBBT website for cost information and other details.

  • If overnight accommodations are needed, please contact one of the following local businesses for rates and availability. 

  • Our thanks to the partners who make this event possible.

A smiling woman wearing a wetsuit stands in thigh deep water holding a bundle of long eelgrass shoots.

Video

Volunteer Stories

Volunteers share their experiences participating in Virginia's annual eelgrass collection efforts and what connecting with nature means to them.

Watch Video
×