Reef Ball Installation

Tampa Bay Watch is recruiting volunteers to install oyster reef balls along the shoreline of Coquina Key Bird Island.

Where: The meeting location is Bay Vista Park, 7000 4th St S, St Petersburg, FL 33705.

What: The project will involve the installation of oyster reef balls which is a heavy project as reef balls weigh 200 pounds each. Two people share the weight of each reef ball at time to load them from a trailer to the boat, then we roll them into place on the shoreline of the island. The minimum age to volunteer is 16 years old.

Why: The Coquina Key Bird Island is a nesting island/rookery for Brown Pelicans, Double-crested Cormorants, and several species of wading birds, with a Bird Island Observation area located on the south end of Coquina Key, created by St. Petersburg Audubon. There is a boat channel located to the north of the island exiting Little Bayou, as well as a channel on the east side, running north to south, along the intercoastal of Tampa Bay. Over time, this island has seen severe erosion from this boat traffic and many of the mangroves vital for nesting have been undercut by this erosion and fallen into the bay. The goal of the reef ball installation project is to stabilize the shoreline and prevent erosion while creating habitat similar to natural oyster communities found along shoreline areas throughout Tampa Bay.

If you have any questions or if would like to volunteer with a group, please contact Rachel Arndt directly at rarndt@tampabaywatch.org.