Seagrass & Maerl

Falmouth is one of the country’s most beautiful and protected marine areas.  The Fal and Helford is a European Designated Special Area of Conservation with 60% of its area designated for sea inlets. These inlets support some of the UK’s most valuable and diverse habitats, seagrasses and maerl beds. Seagrass is one of the most valuable and biodiverse habitats on the planet and is one of the few habitats that provide multiple benefits to the environment.

Falmouth also arguably has the largest and most healthy maerl beds in England. Their existence dates back 4000 years.  The shallow seabed of Falmouth harbour is actually the sides of a flooded river valley or ria, flooded after the last ice age. Maerl – a slow growing calcareous algae – thrives on these banks.

Maerl beds are teeming with life, as they are perfect for juvenile crustaceans, worms, molluscs and anemones to live. In addition to this biodiversity value, maerl beds also store carbon, making them vital in our fight to minimise climate change.

Find out more information on Maerl here.

Find out more about the Blue Meadows Project here, or, get more details on the importance of seagrass here.