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Working on the reef. Click for full size.

Posted on July 6, 2018October 16, 2018 by Erika Zambello

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choctawhatcheebasinalliance

#floridatrail Alaqua Section! We get to enjoy this

#floridatrail Alaqua Section! We get to enjoy this beautiful part of our Choctawhatchee watershed thanks to the stewardship of Eglin AFB Reservation and the @floridatrail Association. 🙏
#trail #creek #ChoctawatcheeBasinAlliance

A huge thank you to Alex Fogg and Jim Shirah for j

A huge thank you to Alex Fogg and Jim Shirah for joining us at Fort Walton Beach High School for our "Dangers to Our Waters" SHOALS lesson. The students learned how human choices impact our waterways, which included an emphasis on invasive species. Alex, the Marine Resource Coordinator for Okaloosa County gave a presentation on invasive lionfish and what Okaloosa County is doing to control them. Students were able to marvel over the live specimen and learned the best way to keep their populations in check--eat them! Jim, the Executive Chef of Dewey Destin's Harborside, cooked up the donated filets from the Emerald Coast Open lionfish tournament for the students to try. Only two students had ever tried lionfish and the consensus was they are delicious! We are so proud to have such wonderful community partners that are working to help us reach our goals of maintaining healthy waterways.

If you would like to learn all about lionfish, eat lionfish, and find out what you can do about the invasion come to the Lionfish Removal and Awareness Day in May! 📷@murphyphoto
@destinfwb @deweydestinseafood
#lionfish #exoticspecies #destin

#waterqualitymonitoring! Did you know that CBA ha

#waterqualitymonitoring!
Did you know that CBA has been water quality monitoring in partnership with @uflorida LAKEWATCH program since 1996? The data collected is used as baseline information to examine trends in local waterways.
This photo was taken on Western Lake, one of our rare coastal dune lakes. Each month volunteers collect water samples and data from all 15 of the named coastal dune lakes. To read the annual water quality reports on the dune lakes, go to basinalliance.org.
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📷@murphyphoto .
@fl.stateparks #flstateparks
#graytonbeach #sowal #hey30a #beachcomberdestin #dontpanicitstannic #watercolorresort #sowalbeaches #southwalton

#creeklife and #traillife converge! The Alaqua Sec

#creeklife and #traillife converge! The Alaqua Section of the Florida Scenic Trail is a great place to scope out some of the creeks that connect our Choctawhatchee watershed. Here's White Top Branch, which eventually flows into Alaqua Creek, which opens into Alaqua Bayou, a tributary of Choctawhatche Bay. We hope you get out and explore all our watershed has to offer.
#floridascenictrail #floridatrail #creek #trail #pureflorida
@floridatrail

Saltmarsh rules! This little bit of remaining mars

Saltmarsh rules! This little bit of remaining marsh on the south shore of Choctawhatchee Bay supports sawgrass, needlerush, cordgrass, salt bush, and slash pine. These uniquely-adapted plants and the soil they grow in have the power to filter and store water, provide a home for wildlife, and protect the coast from storms and flooding. Marsh is worth protecting and restoring. Join CBA now at the link in the bio.
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#wetland #marsh #saltmarsh #cbaforthebay #sawgrass #cordgrass #nwfdailynews #slashpine

In honor of #iheartestuariesweek, here's a fun fac

In honor of #iheartestuariesweek, here's a fun fact from Restore America's Estuaries: $1 invested in environmental restoration creates $4 economic value by enhancing tourism and fishing! That means you can invest in our local community by investing in our waterways. Join CBA today at basinalliance.org.
Crabbing and paddleboard photo by @murphyphoto.
Fish photo by Walt Spence.
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#iheartestuaries #fishing #fish #standuppaddle
#boatdog #crab #sowal #boteboards #bote
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@nicksmulletmafia @murphyphoto @raestuaries @usfws @estuaries4life @estuarypartnership @boteboards @treylermadetournaments

#Estuaries provide clean water, abundant wildlife,

#Estuaries provide clean water, abundant wildlife, natural beauty, recreation, and historic and cultural
assets that boost property values and attract tourism. Protecting and restoring habitat for wildlife also protects and enhances coastal communities’ resilience in the face of extreme weather. Living shorelines for the win! These are a few reasons why #iheartestuaries.

To learn more about why our local estuary is the heart of our community visit basinalliance.org.
@usfws
@raestuaries
#iheartestuaries #cbaforthebay #terrapin #estuary #destin #sowal

Today is International Day of Women and Girls in S

Today is International Day of Women and Girls in Science! Did you know that less than 30% of researchers worldwide are women? At CBA, 72% of scientists are women 🤓. We are proud of our exemplary women scientists who act as role models for girls interested in pursuing a career in science. 📷@murphyphoto
#womenScienceDay #February11 #womeninstem #nwfdailynews #destinlife #sowal

Getting off to a good start! We hope you are enjo

Getting off to a good start!
We hope you are enjoying a good sunrise over the water every now and then-- it's one of the best perks of living in the Choctawhatchee watershed! Here CBA Ecology Technician Chad pauses in his work to watch the sun peek over the treeline at Tucker Bayou in Point Washington. If these are the sights that move you, join CBA at the link in the bio.
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📷@murphyphoto .
#pointwashington #bayou #sunrise #cbaforthebay #beanoutsider #sowal #hey30a #visitsouthwalton #nwfdailynews

Dune lake ❤! Morris Lake was looking good this w

Dune lake ❤! Morris Lake was looking good this weekend. CBA and our volunteer citizen scientists partner with Walton County and @mattiekellyenvironmental to study and monitor Walton County's 15 named coastal dune lakes. The coastal dune lakes, characterized by their intermittent connection to the Gulf of Mexico, are rare and imperiled. Learn more about these local treasures at the link in the bio.
#coastaldunelakes #dunelakes #sowal #hey30a #visitsouthwalton #nwfdailynews #citizenscience
#waterqualitymonitoring #flstateparks
@nwfstatecollege

Early morning critter collection! CBA and @nwf_en

Early morning critter collection!
CBA and @nwf_environmental_stewards are often up early collecting local plants and animals for education purposes. We bring the outdoors to classrooms and festivals so that people can experience with all five senses the wonder of our waterways and the wildlife that depend on them. Join CBA today at basinalliance.org.
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📷@murphyphoto .
#beanoutsider #cbaforthebay #science #iheartestuaries #crab #baylife #saltmarsh .
@llbean @nwfstatecollege

This month in Grasses in Classes our 5th graders a

This month in Grasses in Classes our 5th graders are learning about adaptations! Our resident salt marsh grass, smooth cordgrass, has adapted to live in various salinity levels around the bay. It does this by excreting salt onto its leaves so it can use the freshwater in natural processes.
Can all plants do this? Spoiler Alert! Not all plants can adapt to a changing salinity. We bring in freshwater Elodea and look at its leaves under a microscope. The students first see what the cells look like in freshwater and then they see how they change when exposed to saltwater. The cell membranes collapse which leads to a wilty plant that eventually dies.

If you would like to join our team and be a champion for the bay please visit basinalliance.org. Your donation can help us continue our hands-on education programs that develop our future water stewards.
#science #cbaforthebay #environmentaleducation #microscope
@osf_2015 @nwfstatecollege @nwf_environmental_stewards

Did you know?... One adult oyster can filter up to

Did you know?...
One adult oyster can filter up to 50 gallons of water a day. From @noaa: "Oysters are filter feeders, consuming phytoplankton (free-swimming algae) and improving water quality while they filter their food from the water. As generations of oysters settle on top of each other and grow, they form reefs that provide structured habitat for many fish species and crabs."
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This photo shows a cluster of oysters from one of our successful Choctawhatchee Bay living shoreline sites. CBA and partners are committed to creating important habitat to ensure swimmable, fishable waterways now and into the future. Join us at basinalliance.org!
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📷@murphyphoto .
#oyster #mussel #cleanwater
#cbaforthebay .
@usfws @myfwc @impactnwf @gulfpower @nwf_environmental_stewards

It's never too early to learn about living shoreli

It's never too early to learn about living shorelines!
CBA and @nwf_environmental_stewards took our living shorelines model--complete with live fish and crabs--to the Wildlife Bash at Henderson Beach State Park. Interacting with the living shoreline model, kids learn about the importance of healthy habitat by connecting to the wildlife that lives there.
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#fish #livingshoreline #learning #wildlife #surprise
@fl.stateparks 📷@murphyphoto

We are sending a huge CBA 🙏 to the Medina Famil

We are sending a huge CBA 🙏 to the Medina Family of @pedego30a, a local, family-owned business who gives part of every bike rental to sustain our local waterways now and into the future! Have fun and do good at the same time! Rent a super-cool e-bike @pedego30a today!
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#hometownheroes #locallyowned #momandpopshop

#worldwetlandsday! Enjoy this shot of one of our b

#worldwetlandsday!
Enjoy this shot of one of our beautiful local wetlands.Did you know that 40% of species worldwide are dependent on wetlands?
Join us now at the link in the bio and help us take care of our wetlands.
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#wetland #biodiversity #water #nature

We love this fun, local tournament! Sign up now an

We love this fun, local tournament! Sign up now and have fun while supporting swimmable fishable waterways. Details in repost below.
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#Repost @swc_red_drum_classic
• • • • • •
Who’s taking the Grand Champ title from @dahnkeducknut ?!? He got a late start with the wind blowing but, took the Mrs. out and captured the victory. ⁣
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Sign up now for the 2nd Annual Red Drum Classic! Going down February 21st & 22nd at The Local Market in beautiful Destin, FL!⁣⁣
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All ages & skill levels are welcome to come and get in on the fun! Advanced purchase $25.00 entry fee gets you in the competition to win Cash/Prizes but, more importantly, bragging rights! After 2/15 Entry Fee is $30.00. ⁣⁣⁣
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#SkinnyWaterCulture #HCFT #TheLocalMarketDestin #ChoctawatcheeBasinAlliance #CatchAndRelease #Performance #Adventure #Outdoors #NightOrDayBlueSkiesOrGreySWC

Get curious! We hope we never lose our youthful cu

Get curious! We hope we never lose our youthful curiosity. Come out and see us and other wildlife champions at the Henderson Beach Wildlife Bash today. We will be here until 1:00.
@fl.stateparks @destinfwb @destinhistoryfishingmuseum @gulfarium @nwf_environmental_stewards
#curious #fish #cbaforthebay

Where will you explore this weekend? The Choctawha

Where will you explore this weekend?
The Choctawhatchee watershed offers about 5000 square miles of breathtaking biodiversity and outdoor recreation. Join us in our mission to provide swimmable, fishable, livable waterways now and into the future at basinalliance.org.
📷@murphyphoto
#boteboards #getoutside #outdoors #exploreflorida #therealflorida #nonprofit

Fish in the classroom!Yesterday, our education tea

Fish in the classroom!Yesterday, our education team was at Destin Middle School for our Dunes in Schools program. Students learned about what kind of life can be found in our coastal dune lakes. These rare ecosystems can be home to fresh and salt water species due to their outfalls that periodically open to the Gulf of Mexico.

To learn more about our work with coastal dune lakes and our education programs visit basinalliance.org.

#environmentaleducation #fish #science #destin #dmsmarlins #destinlife
@dmsmarlins

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Grasses in Classes: 2018-2019 Year Recap
30A 10K Benefits Local Nonprofit Organizations
Shoreline Church Hosts Flyfishing Film Tour with Proceeds Benefiting CBA
April Coastal Clean-Ups with the Choctawhatchee Basin Alliance
Shoreline Grasses Growing at Post’l Point Site

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cba@nwfsc.edu

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PBS Story on CBA Living Shorelines

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