{"id":25173,"date":"2026-08-04T16:57:46","date_gmt":"2026-08-04T16:57:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/marfund2.argon83portfolio.com\/?p=25173"},"modified":"2026-08-04T16:59:08","modified_gmt":"2026-08-04T16:59:08","slug":"seagrass-survey-provides-key-information-for-the-conservation-of-coastal-ecosystems-in-tela-bay","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/marfund2.argon83portfolio.com\/en\/2026\/08\/04\/seagrass-survey-provides-key-information-for-the-conservation-of-coastal-ecosystems-in-tela-bay\/","title":{"rendered":"Seagrass Survey Provides Key Information for the Conservation of Coastal Ecosystems in Tela Bay"},"content":{"rendered":"<div data-elementor-type=\"wp-post\" data-elementor-id=\"25173\" class=\"elementor elementor-25173\" data-elementor-post-type=\"post\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-a50ef96 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"a50ef96\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-89fdfc0 e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"89fdfc0\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-7aa6aab elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"7aa6aab\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>On June 24, 2026, the Association of Friends of the Tela Reefs (AMATELA), as part of the <em>Protection of Maritime Resources in Central America III (Phase III)<\/em> project, with support from the German Cooperation through KfW, conducted a <strong>seagrass survey in Tela Bay<\/strong> to generate information that contributes to the monitoring and conservation of these ecosystems. The activity took place in Punta Izopo National Park as part of the management actions for the Tela Bay Marine Wildlife Refuge.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-e455d7e e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"e455d7e\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-eb7127c e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"eb7127c\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-d4fc8d0 e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"d4fc8d0\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\" data-settings=\"{&quot;background_background&quot;:&quot;slideshow&quot;,&quot;background_slideshow_gallery&quot;:[],&quot;background_slideshow_loop&quot;:&quot;yes&quot;,&quot;background_slideshow_slide_duration&quot;:5000,&quot;background_slideshow_slide_transition&quot;:&quot;fade&quot;,&quot;background_slideshow_transition_duration&quot;:500}\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-e1ffbef elementor-widget elementor-widget-video\" data-id=\"e1ffbef\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-settings=\"{&quot;video_type&quot;:&quot;hosted&quot;,&quot;controls&quot;:&quot;yes&quot;}\" data-widget_type=\"video.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-hosted-video elementor-wrapper elementor-open-inline\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<video class=\"elementor-video\" src=\"https:\/\/marfund2.argon83portfolio.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AMATELA-Jun-2026-Ingles.mp4\" controls=\"\" preload=\"metadata\" controlslist=\"nodownload\"><\/video>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-83aa38e e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"83aa38e\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-1f0edcf elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"1f0edcf\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>During the survey, a\u00a0<strong>new site with seagrass presence<\/strong>\u00a0was identified. One of the most significant findings was the\u00a0<strong>possible presence of\u00a0<\/strong><strong><i>Halophila decipiens<\/i><\/strong>, a species that has not previously been reported in any of the three marine and coastal protected areas of Tela Bay. Additional sampling will be required to confirm the species\u2019 identification.<\/p><p>The project\u2019s initial goal was to identify 0.8 hectares of seagrass; however, by 2025, a total of 11.8 hectares had already been documented, and this new survey will complement the existing information.<\/p><p>These findings expand knowledge of the region\u2019s biodiversity and the national distribution of this species, providing valuable information to guide management measures, such as identifying suitable anchoring zones, and to update the distribution map of seagrass meadows in Tela Bay. The newly identified sites will also be incorporated into ongoing monitoring and surveillance efforts.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-29a3dea e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"29a3dea\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-2d960be e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"2d960be\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-8dc4f56 elementor-widget-tablet__width-initial elementor-widget elementor-widget-image\" data-id=\"8dc4f56\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"image.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<figure class=\"wp-caption\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img fetchpriority=\"high\" width=\"800\" height=\"588\" src=\"https:\/\/marfund2.argon83portfolio.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/1-1024x753.jpg\" class=\"attachment-large size-large wp-image-25178\" alt=\"\" decoding=\"async\" srcset=\"https:\/\/marfund2.argon83portfolio.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/1-1024x753.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/marfund2.argon83portfolio.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/1-300x221.jpg 300w, https:\/\/marfund2.argon83portfolio.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/1-768x565.jpg 768w, https:\/\/marfund2.argon83portfolio.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/1-1536x1129.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/marfund2.argon83portfolio.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/1-16x12.jpg 16w, https:\/\/marfund2.argon83portfolio.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/1-600x441.jpg 600w, https:\/\/marfund2.argon83portfolio.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/1.jpg 1609w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<figcaption class=\"widget-image-caption wp-caption-text\">Possible identification of the species Halophila decipiens.<\/figcaption>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-bb5f9df e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"bb5f9df\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-6d248bc e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"6d248bc\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-ce7cd47 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"ce7cd47\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>The survey involved seven members of the co-management teams from the Tela Bay Marine Wildlife Refuge and Punta Izopo National Park, with technical support from the LifeWeb Initiative\/Institute of Forest Conservation (ICF) and PROLANSATE Foundation, as well as support from the Municipality of Tela and Tela Marine.<\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-10466 alignright\" src=\"https:\/\/marfund.org\/es\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/20260623_144523-1024x768.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"373\" height=\"280\" \/><\/span><\/p><p>The progress achieved during the survey was also made possible by AMATELA\u2019s\u00a0<strong>enhanced capacity<\/strong>\u00a0to carry out fieldwork. With support from Phase III, the organization now has its own boat, trailer, and diving equipment, enabling more efficient field expeditions and follow-up activities in protected areas. These resources help ensure the continuity of monitoring and management efforts in priority conservation sites.<\/p><p>Protecting seagrass meadows helps conserve essential habitats for fish and invertebrates that use these ecosystems as shelter and nursery grounds. Many of these species also depend on mangroves and coral reefs throughout their life cycle, making the conservation of these interconnected ecosystems\u00a0<strong>essential for sustaining the fisheries upon which many coastal communities rely.<\/strong><\/p><p>In Tela Bay, AMATELA\u2019s work represents an important step toward improving knowledge of these ecosystems and supporting informed conservation decisions that protect the natural resources sustaining the region\u2019s biodiversity and local livelihoods.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-f8c4d81 e-con-full e-flex e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"f8c4d81\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-d1c54e8 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-child\" data-id=\"d1c54e8\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-fa06c3a elementor-widget elementor-widget-image\" data-id=\"fa06c3a\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"image.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<figure class=\"wp-caption\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img width=\"800\" height=\"600\" src=\"https:\/\/marfund2.argon83portfolio.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/20260623_145651-scaled-1-1024x768.jpg\" class=\"attachment-large size-large wp-image-25179\" alt=\"\" decoding=\"async\" srcset=\"https:\/\/marfund2.argon83portfolio.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/20260623_145651-scaled-1-1024x768.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/marfund2.argon83portfolio.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/20260623_145651-scaled-1-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/marfund2.argon83portfolio.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/20260623_145651-scaled-1-768x576.jpg 768w, https:\/\/marfund2.argon83portfolio.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/20260623_145651-scaled-1-1536x1152.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/marfund2.argon83portfolio.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/20260623_145651-scaled-1-2048x1536.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/marfund2.argon83portfolio.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/20260623_145651-scaled-1-16x12.jpg 16w, https:\/\/marfund2.argon83portfolio.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/20260623_145651-scaled-1-600x450.jpg 600w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<figcaption class=\"widget-image-caption wp-caption-text\">The seven members of the co-management of the Tela Bay Marine Wildlife Refuge and the Punta Izopo National Park who participated in the prospecting.<\/figcaption>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-74379e8 elementor-widget elementor-widget-spacer\" data-id=\"74379e8\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"spacer.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-spacer\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-spacer-inner\"><\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-653d5a7 e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"653d5a7\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-33c4843 elementor-widget-divider--view-line elementor-widget elementor-widget-divider\" data-id=\"33c4843\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"divider.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-divider\">\n\t\t\t<span class=\"elementor-divider-separator\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-348230a elementor-widget elementor-widget-icon-box\" data-id=\"348230a\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"icon-box.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-icon-box-wrapper\">\n\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-icon-box-content\">\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"elementor-icon-box-title\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<span  >\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tProject for the Protection of Maritime Resources in Central America III \u2013 Phase III\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"elementor-icon-box-description\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\tPhase III supports the conservation and sustainable use of natural resources in and between selected coastal marine protected areas of the Mesoamerican Reef System by improving management effectiveness and restoring key ecosystems\u2014including mangroves, coral reefs, seagrasses, and fisheries. It also supports sustainable economic alternatives for local communities. The expected outcome is long-term ocean health through regional cooperation and innovation.\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-fba334f elementor-widget elementor-widget-spacer\" data-id=\"fba334f\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"spacer.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-spacer\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-spacer-inner\"><\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Photo: Daniela Sansur<\/p>","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":25175,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[37,66,1009,34],"tags":[1107,1158,1163],"class_list":["post-25173","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-general","category-honduras","category-mar-news","category-noticias-sam","tag-kfw-development-bank","tag-phase-iii","tag-protection-of-maritime-resources-in-central-america-iii"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/marfund2.argon83portfolio.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25173","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/marfund2.argon83portfolio.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/marfund2.argon83portfolio.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/marfund2.argon83portfolio.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/marfund2.argon83portfolio.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=25173"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/marfund2.argon83portfolio.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25173\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":25183,"href":"https:\/\/marfund2.argon83portfolio.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25173\/revisions\/25183"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/marfund2.argon83portfolio.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/25175"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/marfund2.argon83portfolio.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=25173"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/marfund2.argon83portfolio.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=25173"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/marfund2.argon83portfolio.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=25173"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}