Keepers of the Coast

10 stories

Vintage poster of a healthy Tampa Bay at dawn with seagrass shallows, dolphins, wading birds and a family kayak

The Tampa Bay Comeback: How Our Bay Nearly Died and Came Back to Life

By the 1970s Tampa Bay was nearly dead: algae mats, empty water, vanished birds. How laws, science, and neighbors brought it back, told for families.

Underwater photo of a seagrass meadow with a tiny seahorse curled on a blade and small fish schooling behind

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Seagrass, Explained for Kids: The Underwater Meadows Everything Depends On

Seagrass is the underwater meadow feeding Tampa Bay: nursery for most of our fish, manatee salad, and oxygen factory. The kid-level tour.

Painting of a family beach cleanup crew at sunrise with grabbers and buckets, one kid holding up a found flip flop like a trophy

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Beach Cleanups with Kids: Where to Join One and How to Start Your Own

Beach cleanups with kids around Tampa Bay: Keep Pinellas Beautiful events, September's International Coastal Cleanup, and the DIY family kit.

Watercolor illustration of microscopic red tide algae cells drifting like amber sparks through blue green seawater

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Red Tide, Gently Explained: What It Is, How to Check the Beach, and How Kids Can Help Scientists

Red tide, explained calmly for families: what Karenia brevis is, how to check FWC's beach status map before you go, and how kids can help the science.

Painting of a child filling in sandcastle holes at sunset while tiny sea turtle hatchlings cross the smooth sand to the gulf

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Why We Fill In Our Sandcastle Holes: Small Beach Habits That Save Turtles (and Rescuers)

Beach holes trap sea turtles, block rescuers, and collapse on diggers: why filling in holes is the beach's most important habit, and how to dig safely.

Photo of an exposed oyster reef at low tide with a tiny crab in the shells and a snowy egret hunting behind

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Oyster Reefs: The Bay's Living Water Filters and the Volunteers Rebuilding Them

One oyster filters two gallons an hour, and Tampa Bay lost 85 percent of its reefs. The shell recycling and family builds bringing them back.

Night photo style image of a dark beachfront street with amber turtle safe lights and a nesting sea turtle silhouette on the moonlit beach

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Lights Out for Turtles: How Beach Towns Go Dark for Nesting Season, and Families Can Too

Why gulf beach towns dim their lights May through October: hatchlings steer by moonlight. The FWC rules (low, shielded, long) and what renters can do.

Split view watercolor of mangrove roots above and below water with baby fish sheltering in the underwater roots

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The Mangrove Nursery: Why Florida's Tangled Trees Matter More Than They Look

Florida's three mangroves (red, black, white) nursery the bay's fish, break storm waves, and are protected by law. The tangled trees, explained.

Photo of a family planting marsh grass plugs with muddy hands at a shoreline restoration event

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Adopt, Sponsor, Volunteer: Family Conservation Programs Around Tampa Bay Worth Joining

The Tampa Bay family conservation menu: adopt a real named manatee, steward shorebirds, build oyster reefs, and pick programs that do real work.

Vintage poster of a pristine beach at dusk with one line of family footprints and ghost crabs emerging as the family leaves with all their gear

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Leave It Better: Teaching Kids the Leave No Trace Rules, Beach Edition

The seven Leave No Trace principles for Florida beach families: shells and sand dollars, dunes and sea oats, wildlife space, leaving it better.