Distribution and status of intertidal and sub‐tidal seagrass (Zostera spp.) in Scotland

There has been no recent overview of the status of seagrass in Scotland since 1993, despite many more recent surveys for both conservation and water quality purposes. This poster aims to summarise more recent data in the context of the older work to assess possible changes over time and gaps in current data. Sub-tidal Zostera marina is mainly found on the west coast, with sites associated with both islands and the mainland. Some mainland sites have been lost recently. Zostera marina is also found in Orkney, but seems to be absent from the east coast. Intertidal seagrass (Z. noltii and Z. angustifolia) are mainly found on the east coast with an estimated total area of ca. 320 ha, whereas several losses and few extant sites are found on the west coast. However, several key areas on the west coast, especially the Inner Hebrides, including Skye, as well as Shetland in the north, have not been adequately surveyed recently. Priorities for further work are surveys in these areas, as well as quantitative estimates of Z. marina extent which are lacking at the moment.