🌊 Project Xenios: The starting signal for our seagrass monitoring!

A healthy ocean needs a strong foundation – and that's exactly what our latest environmental protection project is all about: We are officially launching Project Xenios Phase Seagrass !

Over the next two years, we will dedicate ourselves intensively to researching and protecting a very special and indispensable hero of our local underwater world: the small seagrass (scientifically: Cymodocea nodosa ).

Why exactly Cymodocea nodosa ?

You might be wondering why we're focusing on this particular variety. Cymodocea nodosa is the dominant seagrass species in the shallow coastal waters of Cyprus. Unlike other species, it thrives in sandy soils, where it forms dense, underground root networks (rhizomes).

This plant fulfills two vital functions for our ecosystem:

1. Coastal protection: The roots stabilize the sandy soil extremely effectively and prevent winter storms and currents from eroding our bays and beaches.

2. The turtle cafeteria: Cymodocea nodosa is the absolute favorite food of the green sea turtle ( Chelonia mydas ), which we encounter so often at our dive sites! Since we already maintain a comprehensive turtle database, we want to use this project to precisely document how the health of the seagrass meadows is related to the behavior and occurrence of our armored friends.

Current status: Genuine teamwork at our grassroots level

We don't just talk theory, we take action! Things have really gotten going for us in the last few days, and we've made the preparations for the launch:

Spot hunting by scooter: Laura, Daniel, and Sophia grabbed the scooters and cruised along the coast. With the DPVs , we were able to explore a large area in a short time, precisely targeting the zones in Green Bay , DeCosta Bay , and near the...

to filter out caves that are perfectly suited for our long-term monitoring.

Craftsmanship & Preparation: To ensure the data is scientifically accurate, each photo must be

The photos will later be taken from the exact same distance to the ground. Sophia built a special camera stand for this purpose. At the same time, Laura and Sophia procured the metal rods – and Laura grabbed the angle grinder and cut the rods to the correct length herself!

Next step: Into the water!

The preparations are complete, the materials are ready. Next week it's serious business: We'll be driving the freshly cut metal poles into the ground at our very first spot in Green Bay. This will mark the ten fixed squares that we will be closely monitoring every two weeks for the next two years.

Become part of the project

We are not just documenting for ourselves: All collected data and the development of the meadows will be made accessible to everyone in a separate, public database on our website.

And soon you can even get involved yourself: We're already working behind the scenes on a dedicated PADI Specialty course for this seagrass monitoring. As soon as the plan is finalized, you can train to become citizen scientists and actively support us with the underwater counts!

If you're at our base next week and see us setting off with the poles and camera rig, keep your fingers crossed for us – or feel free to ask us anything!

Together we protect what we love.

Until the next update from the seabed, your team from the Cyprus Diving Centre