Marine Resources Council

💦 June is LagoonWatch's 35th Anniversary, and each week, we'll be sharing fun facts about the program. Swipe to see fact #2!

🖊 LagoonWatch Citizen Scientists take a variety of measurements during their monitoring sessions, including temperature, pH, conductivity, total dissolved solids, phosphate & nitrate concentrations, and water clarity & depth.

🐬 To learn more about how you can contribute to support the LagoonWatch program, visit https://givebutter.com/LagoonWatch

🌊 Happy World Oceans Day! 🌊

🐬 Although MRC's mission is the Indian River Lagoon, we can't miss the chance to celebrate our global oceans! There are five inlets that connect the Lagoon to the Atlantic Ocean and provide saltwater to the estuarine ecosystem. The Lagoon provides nursery habitat for fish and crabs that live in the Atlantic Ocean.

🐢 World Oceans Day celebrates the life-giving characteristics of our oceans and raises awareness about how we can preserve ocean biodiversity. Scientists agree that protecting 30% of the global oceans by 2030 can help protect against the impacts of a warming climate.

🦈 Join us in celebrating World Oceans Day by sharing your favorite ocean animal in the comments below. 💙

🦆 If you're on eBird, you might know the Ted Moorhead Lagoon House is a hot spot! The Science Team has been dedicated to tracking regular bird sightings around campus.

🔎 The Spring report details birds sighted, the largest flocks, and which Winter birds have migrated out of our area.

▶ Swipe through to see the report in its entirety, and how you can contribute to the Fall report!

Marine Resources Council is saddened to announce the passing of beloved environmental advocate and MRC Board member, Maureen Rupe.

Maureen served her community for decades as a devoted advocate for clean water, responsible growth, and environmental stewardship. She was a member of the MRC Board of Directors from 1998 to 2026, and her leadership serves as an inspiration for us all. We will miss Maureen dearly.

💭 Speaking of LagoonWatch...April's Maps are live! This month, we're featuring phosphate concentrations.

🔬 In April, most LagoonWatch sites reported phosphate concentrations at or below 0.09 ppm, which is considered "Good" by the U.S. EPA. Two notable outliers were reported from the Banana River Lagoon, where the concentrations were significantly higher and would be considered "Very Poor."

🌱 Phosphates are nutrients that can occur naturally and are used by algae and aquatic plants to foster growth. However, elevated concentrations can be caused by fertilizer runoff, septic system failures, and stormwater drainage. This can fuel harmful algal blooms and reduce water clarity, which can be harmful to IRL wildlife and seagrasses.

🗺 Check out the rest of April's Maps at https://tinyurl.com/April2026Maps

🎊 Happy Birthday, LagoonWatch 🎉

This June marks the 35th Anniversary of LagoonWatch, and to celebrate, we're sharing facts about the historic program each week. Did you know that it is the longest continuously running citizen science water quality monitoring program in the Indian River Lagoon? 🤯

The program is funded almost entirely by donors just like you! You can contribute to supporting our monitors by visiting: https://givebutter.com/LagoonWatch

🔥 June's Lagoon at Noon received tons of engagement and was followed by a great discussion! If you didn't get the chance to watch yesterday, visit our YouTube channel at the link in bio to catch up on all things biochar with Dr. Chris Fields-Johnson! 🌳

Dropping onto your feed with our June event round-up 🤗

Keep an eye out for the Lagoon Explorer (June 3) and Lagoon House Tour (June 13) events! They are the two new monthly events we'll be hosting, and we're looking forward to meeting some new friends 💙

📝 Register for all events by visiting the link in our bio!

👐🏻 This is the last chance to register for our upcoming new volunteer orientation dates! If you've been thinking about joining our volunteer corps, you can join us Friday in Sebastian or Saturday in Palm Bay to learn all about Marine Resources Council and what to expect from the volunteer experience. 💙

📝 Register to join us on our volunteer app: https://pointapp.org/orgs/7445