Collecting samples

Checking fyke nets

Sampling in the marsh

fyke nets in the marsh at the sundown

Dave Meyer and Chris Doley checking samples

Description not available.

PVC pipes are used to protect the Oculina varicosa and to provide stability during the restoration.

Oculina varicosa rubble destroyed by commercial fishing gear.

Oculina varicosa restoration structure comprised of cement blocks and PVC piping.

Description not available.

Grouper spawning aggregation in healthy Oculina varicosa habitat.

Description not available.

Description not available.

Description not available.

Oculina varicosa rubble destroyed by commercial fishing gear.

Map showing location of oculina reserve.

Scott Gudes and Becky Allee of NOAA prepare to begin work at the Tampa Bay monofilament clean-up.

A National Marine Fisheries Service enforcement officer volunteer at the clean-up.

A boater observes progress at the clean-up sites.

A Brown Pelican, one of the species commonly entangled in discarded fishing line, rests at the entrance to Maximo Park. Volunteers and NOAA and Tampa Baywatch staff departed from Maximo Park to begin the clean-up activities around Tampa Bay.

The Reefmaker, a vessel, and volunteers engaged in the clean-up.

A single Brown Pelican rests on the water in Tampa Bay. Brown Pelicans are one of the species that benefit from the monofilament clean-up that is organized yearly by Tampa Baywatch. Brown Pelicans and other birds fall victim to discarded monofilament fishing line when they roost on estuary islands.

A volunteer radios for his next location.

A Great Egret, Casmerodius albus, preens in a tree on an island in Tampa Bay. Great Egrets are another species of bird that become entangled in discarded fishing line in their roosting habitat.

Three Brown Pelicans rest at the entrance to Maximo Park.

Tampa Baywatch and McDill Airforce Base pontoon boats assist in the clean-up and rescue of entangled birds.

Observers watch the progress

Scott Gudes of NOAA passes an injured pelican onto a waiting boat that will take the bird to a rehabilitation center.

Scott Gudes of NOAA cradles a pelican that was injured when it became entangled in monofilament in its roosting area.

A heron sits on the dock alongside the water. Numerous species of herons live and roost in the waters that surround Tampa Bay.

A Great Egret, Casmerodius albus, roosts in a tree.

Volunteers at the clean up site relax after their work.

Scott Gudes and Becky Allee of NOAA participate in the all day clean-up.

One of the many boats that helped to transfer NOAA volunteers from the staging area to the clean-up sites.

A brown pelican preens in the water.

The shoreline around Tampa Bay.

NOAA volunteers prepare to travel to the clean-up sites.

A view of Tampa Bay and the causeway.

The surrounding shoreline and homes on Tampa Bay.

Scott Gudes buries a dead pelican that was removed from the mangroves where it was entangled in discarded monofilament.

Scott Gudes prepares to bury a dead pelican. Pelicans are one of the bird species that become entangled in discarded monofilament fishing line. The birds are trapped by the line when it wraps around their legs and can not fly to hunt for food or reach water. Death is prolonged and painful. The monofilament clean up removes line from the roosting sites to protect birds from entanglement.

Peter Clark of Tampa Baywatch, left, addresses volunteers at the staging area before the workers depart to begin the clean-up.

A dead brown pelican floats in the water as testimony to the destructiveness of discarded monofilament in marine environments.

Volunteers hunt for discarded monofilament in the roots and branches of mangroves. A dead victim, a brown pelican floats in the water nearby.

Volunteers rush to bring an injured bird to the boat that will transport the pelican to wildlife rehabilitators who will attempt to resuscitate the bird. Successful rehabilitation depends upon a number of factors including the length of entanglement and exposure to the elements.

Scott Gudes uses a long handled boat hook to remove monofilament from the upper branches of mangroves where birds roost and may become entangled.

Scott Gudes delivers a welcome speech to the volunteers that joined the NOAA Restoration Center staff and Tampa Baywatch to assist in the monofilament clean-up.

Scott Gudes cradles an injured pelican that was attached to mangroves by monofilament. The bird will be rushed to volunteer land-based rehabilitators.

An unidentified bird skull hangs in the branches of a mangrove where it reminds volunteers of the importance of the clean-up. When monofilament is left in roosting areas, birds will continue to perish.

NOAA's John Iliff and a bird rehabilitator, Lee Fox, introduce a poster created to educate volunteers about how to rescue injured birds.