Two UCF biology graduate students are leading projects developing innovative solutions for conserving seagrass species in Florida, with support from Pegasus Professor of Biology Linda Walters and Assistant Professor of Biology and Genomics and Bioinformatics faculty cluster member Robert Fitak. Their projects are among eight selected for funding through the Seagrass Restoration Technology Development Initiative.

The initiative was created in 2023 by the Florida Legislature and governor through the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, with Mote Marine Laboratory and Aquarium leading the effort. It aims to support restoration technologies and approaches that address seagrass loss and its widespread ecological and economic impacts on communities across Florida.

“Seagrasses around the globe, including in Florida’s Indian River Lagoon, have been decimated in recent decades,” says Walters, who is also director of UCF’s Coastal and Estuarine Ecology Lab (CEELAB). “The effects rippled through the ecosystem and are tragically evidenced by the large number of manatees that died of starvation when no seagrass was present.”

In partnership with Brevard Zoo, Florida Institute of Technology, UCF’s Aquatic Biogeochemistry lab led by biology professor Lisa Chambers and under Walters’ guidance, UCF biology student Luciana Banquero ’22 is examining how sediment quality, nutrient levels, and interspecies competition influence the success of shoal grass (Halodule wrightii) restoration.

“With colleagues at the Florida Institute of Technology and the ����ֱ�� of Lausanne, this project is sequencing genomic DNA of seagrass-associated microbes, comparing how these communities differ between nursery-grown shoal grass and the natural population in the Indian River Lagoon,” Banquero says.

Banquero, who is in her second year on the project, says seagrass meadows provide essential habitat and food for countless marine species and are critical not just in Florida but wherever seagrass is found.

“By combining field trials and laboratory experiments, I aim to identify the conditions that promote seagrass establishment and long-term survival, improve restoration outcomes,  and better understand how planted seagrass interacts with other macroalgal communities,” Banquero says. “Additionally, my collaborators are contributing samples to Mote Marine Laboratory’s seagrass genetic library, which will be used to study seagrass resilience and diversity at the molecular level.”

Her research, inspired by recent algal bloom events in Florida, analyzes the sediment quality at shoal grass planting sites in Brevard County’s Indian River Lagoon and Banana River.

“Algal bloom events can trigger changes in these macroalgal communities, causing native seaweed (Caulerpa prolifera) to dominate the sediment floor and prevent seagrass growth,” Banquero says. “By studying sediment quality and the conditions in which seagrass is planted, we can better understand the complexity of coastal ecosystems and support successful plantings and conservation of these species.”

According to Banquero, researchers have long suspected a competitive dynamic between Caulerpa algae and shoal grass, suggesting that shoal grass tends to perform poorly when the alga is growing nearby. However, no large-scale empirical studies across multiple sites or controlled laboratory trials have been conducted to challenge those long-held assumptions that have guided conservation efforts. Her research aims to fill that gap.

Walters, who has studied the seaweed genus Caulerpa on and off for more than 20 years, notes that members of this genus can be highly invasive and produce noxious secondary chemicals.

“Interactions occur at many levels — from chemicals released by roots to damage from herbivorous fish or boats — and we need to consider all of these factors to get the full story,” Walters says. “This project will study those interactions and clarify whether Caulerpa is harmful and should be removed or avoided when planting seagrass for restoration.”

In collaboration with Fitak, Mote, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC), St. John’s River Water Management District and Bethune-Cookman College, the team will identify heat resilience mechanisms at the molecular level and develop practical guidance for restoration in heat-prone environments.

“Our goal is to understand how rising seawater temperatures cause these plants to decline and identify adaptation mechanisms that can help make them more resilient,” Perscky says.

Her work tests whether exposing seagrass to heat stress in a controlled environment can help plants adapt and pass resilience on to future generations.

“We are using novel technologies, including molecular tools such as transcriptomics, which help identify biomarkers linked to stress memory,” she says. “As well as satellite data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), combined with on-site field data, to track seawater temperatures and detect marine heatwave trends that inform the experimental design.”

To test their hypothesis, Perscky’s team will conduct aquarium experiments that replicate ocean extremes at Mote’s state-of-the-art facility, where plants will be exposed to artificial marine heatwaves to prime them for survival, while open-source data models analyze decades of environmental trends to predict seagrass survival under future climate conditions.

“Thermal priming is not a new technique,” Perscky says. “It’s been used in crops like corn and in coral reefs. When plants and organisms face a second heat event, they remember the first exposure and adapt.”

Fitak, who specializes in genomics, compared the adaptation process to vaccination.

“You expose a young plant to a mini version of marine heat and its system remembers the trigger,” Fitak says. “As adult plants, they become more tolerant for when the real exposure occurs.”

If successful, the approach could be applied not only in Florida but to other seagrasses around the world.

“This knowledge could guide how seagrass is planted in nurseries across the state and beyond,” Perscky says. “In places like Mosquito Lagoon and Banana River, where water stays warmer because it’s regulated by wind rather than tide, seagrass planted there could be more tolerant.”

Walters adds more insight on this approach, which is currently undergoing testing on corals with success in some species in some locations.

“If we can restore areas with native, thermally primed seagrass, it should be more resilient to future heat events,” she says. “We are aiming to create ‘super seagrass,’ similar to efforts with ‘super corals’ that can tolerate higher temperatures than they currently do.”

Perscky and Banquero cited the importance of partnerships in making their work possible.

“Seagrass restoration is highly experimental and requires significant resources,” Banquero says. “Collaborating with scientists with different expertise and leveraging their long-term knowledge of Florida’s coastal ecosystems has enabled me to carry out my project.”

Fitak also noted the multidisciplinary nature of the projects.

“This project is a great example of how science is done in an interdisciplinary way,” he says. “Carla is collaborating with researchers from Mote, FWC, and other agencies, along with Dr. Walters and me, because no one is an expert of everything.”

Beyond environmental impacts, student and community involvement is key to the success of these projects. Banquero has been planting seagrass in macroalgal beds in Brevard County, with local volunteers helping monitor the sites.

“It’s been rewarding to hear their perspectives on why protecting these ecosystems matters and to connect with people directly impacted by our work,” she says.

Similarly, Perscky says partnering with Mote has given students and volunteers hands-on opportunities in seagrass monitoring.

Both projects highlight the challenges facing coastal environments and provide tools to help conserve seagrass beds now and in the future with Fitak emphasizing the importance of community support.

“People love seeing healthy seagrass beds and the biodiversity they support, like manatees,” he says. “Communities want to support restoration, but failed plantings can be discouraging. Our goal is to make restoration effective and resilient so these vital ecosystems thrive.”

While the projects are focused in Florida, Walters points to the broader significance of the work.

“The outcomes of these projects will not only help improve the health of the Indian River Lagoon, but also build on current knowledge and provide practical methods for restoration practitioners to conserve and protect estuaries around the globe,” she says. “I deeply care about this lagoon, and all our efforts aim to improve restoration and resilience so it remains the magical place we know it is well into the future.”

Researchers’ Credentials 
Fitak is an assistant professor in UCF’s Department of Biology in the College of Sciences. He received his doctorate in genetics from the ����ֱ�� of Arizona and his bachelor’s in molecular genetics from The Ohio State ����ֱ��. Before joining UCF in 2019, he worked as a postdoctoral researcher at the Institute for Population Genetics in Vienna, Austria, and at Duke ����ֱ��. He is a member of UCF’s Genomics and Bioinformatics research cluster.

Walters joined UCF in 1997 and was named Pegasus Professor in 2012. She is part of the coastal cluster and leads CEELAB. CEELAB’s work connects UCF biology students with firsthand experience, putting classroom learning into practice. Walters has received more than $19.7 million in grant funding, published more than 120 peer-reviewed journal articles and authored 11 children’s story books about marine conservation.

The move raised concerns about harmful mutations and genetic swamping — or loss of unique traits. However, a recent study co-authored by UCF Assistant Professor of Biology and Genomics and Bioinformatics faculty cluster member Robert Fitak, found that since the introduction, genetic variation has significantly improved; unique traits have been retained; and harmful mutations, while still present, are largely masked by the restored genetic variation.

Findings from the study, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences and led by UCLA researcher Diana Aguilar-Gómez with colleagues, suggest that this rescue model could guide future conservation efforts for other endangered species facing similar threats.

In the 1990s, fewer than 30 Florida panthers remained in the wild. Habitat loss, isolation and unregulated hunting drove the species to their record-low numbers. The steep decline led to inbreeding, causing developmental, reproductive and immunological impairments that spelled a devastating future for the species.

“If the panthers had continued inbreeding, the population would have been driven to extinction,” Fitak says. “The only way to recover them was to restore the genetic variation they had lost. ”

While the introduction helped the population rebound to between 120 to 230 individuals, according to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, researchers wanted to know if the species’ genetic health improved and if their genetic ancestry was being replaced.

“My colleagues sequenced the entire genome of 29 post-rescue Florida panthers and combined it with genomes generated from my group and others to create a larger genomic analysis,” Fitak says.

The study found mixed Florida-Texas ancestry, with 24% to 61% Texas ancestry, indicating increased genetic variation measured by heterozygosity — a marker of how much genetic variation individuals carry.

It also found no evidence of genetic swamping — when genes from one population, such as Texas pumas, overwhelm and dilute the genetic makeup of another, such as Florida panthers. The panthers with mixed ancestry retained on average 59% to 80% Florida ancestry. Over time, Florida ancestry even increased, alleviating fears that the Texas genes would dominate the population’s unique traits.

“One of the risks of introducing Texas pumas was the loss of traits that make Florida panthers unique, but that was not the case,” Fitak says. “Their DNA was still intact and had spread to the individuals we studied. Post-rescue generations were genetically, physiologically and morphologically the same as pre-rescue Florida panthers.”

Moreover, post-rescue panthers carried fewer harmful mutations or deleterious variants, which were not removed but largely masked by the additional genetic variation from Texas pumas.

“Another fear was the possibility of introducing more harmful mutations that would worsen an already vulnerable population, but the opposite happened,” Fitak says. “Bringing in Texas pumas helped offset negative mutations and improved the population’s overall health.”

While the findings have been largely positive, researchers remain cautiously optimistic about the long-term results.

“It’s clear that without the genetic rescue 30 years ago, we probably wouldn’t have a Florida panther today,” Fitak says. “That’s why ongoing monitoring is critical. If their numbers drop and inbreeding rises again, we need to act quickly before facing the same problem.”

He adds that the study underscores the importance of building on research data collected over time.

“The project was a major collaboration led by several scientists and relied heavily on data gathered by multiple groups in previous studies,” Fitak says. “Making such data publicly available is crucial for advancing future research.”

On the broader significance, he says that understanding what worked for Florida panthers could help improve outcomes for other species facing similar declines.

“This kind of intervention will likely become more common as more iconic megafauna in the country and around the world decline,” Fitak says. “Studying its effects in Florida panthers helps us refine the approach and make it more effective for future conservation efforts.”

Aside from the genetic challenges, the Florida panther is also facing another major threat: habitat loss and degradation.

“Continued development in Florida is eating away at the spaces panthers need for survival.” Fitak says. “Development also indirectly impacts water quality and displaces the prey they rely on for food.”

While genetic restoration may have given Florida panthers a second chance, Fitak stresses that monitoring and habitat protection remain critical for their survival. Beyond safeguarding a single species, the effort has ripple effects across an entire ecosystem and holds significance for Floridians who view the panther as the state’s icon.

“Florida panthers are a symbol of the state’s wild heritage,” Fitak says. “Protecting this top predator isn’t just about saving one animal — it’s about preserving the health of an entire ecosystem for future generations.”

Florida panther samples were collected using funding from the Florida Panther Research and Management Trust Fund.

Researcher Credentials:
Fitak is an assistant professor in UCF’s Department of Biology in the College of Sciences. He received his doctorate in genetics from the ����ֱ�� of Arizona and his bachelor’s in molecular genetics from The Ohio State ����ֱ��. Before joining UCF in 2019, he worked as a postdoctoral researcher at the Institute for Population Genetics in Vienna, Austria, and at Duke ����ֱ��. He is a member of UCF’s Genomics and Bioinformatics research cluster.