On the Water + In the Field
Blog + News
A Successful Marine Meadow Workshop at Tiana Bayside Facility
At our October 24th Marine Meadows Workshop, volunteers wove 1800 shoots of eelgrass into discs of burlap, for CCE Marine divers to plant this week!
Funded by and in partnership with the South Shore Estuary Reserve Program
Quogue Stewardship Site Update
With support from our Quogue Stewardship community, CCE Marine’s Back to the Bays team raised and deployed 3 rounds of spat-on-shell oysters this summer, utilizing our Quogue floating Restoration Raft!
2026 Oyster Reef Restoration at Tiana Bayside
Southampton Town officials joined CCE Marine staff to help deploy our 2026 round of spat-on-shell oysters on our restoration reef in Tiana Bay.
Seed Collecting in the Marsh
Smooth Cordgrass, also known by it’s scientific name Sporobolus alterniflorus, is currently in seed! Collection is currently underway.
Reef Raisers + Meadow Makers at Hampton Bays Middle School
CCE Marine staff visiting Hampton Bays Middle School’s entire 6th grade to connect students with oyster reef, eelgrass and coastal habitat restoration!
This work has been funded in part through our Town of Southampton Community Preservation Fund Water Quality Improvement grant.
It’s Eelgrass Planting Season!
As we approach the colder fall months, our Habitat Team is getting ready to plant eelgrass in our existing restoration meadows, as well as some exciting new locations they’ve been scouting! Thanks to funding from the South Shore Estuary Reserve Program and Town of Southampton Community Preservation Fund
Tiana Bayside Marine Camps ~ Summer 2026
Celebrating another successful season of marine science and art programming at Tiana Bayside Facility!
Bay Scallop paddle + plant in our Tiana Bay Shellfish Sanctuary
CCE Marine staff and volunteer stewards enjoyed paddling out to help deploy Bay Scallops in our Tiana Bay Shellfish Sanctuary!
This work has been funded in part through our Town of Southampton Community Preservation Fund Water Quality Improvement grant, and through the generous support provided to our Hampton Bays Stewardship Site Fund.
Quogue Junior Ambassadors POV
Learn about what our Back to the Bays Quogue Jr. Ambassadors have been up to this summer. Lead Ambassadors, Teagan and Oggie, share their experience.
Blue Carbon ~ Mitigating climate change by restoring coastal habitats
Funded by and in partnership with the South Shore Estuary Reserve Program, CCE Marine has been able to continue restoring “Blue Carbon” habitats, like eelgrass and marsh grass. Learn about how Blue Carbon habitats help mitigate climate change.
Quogue Oyster Reef Deployment
Our Quogue Junior Ambassadors came out to help us deploy the first round of summer 2025 spat-on-shell oysters in our Quogue Oyster Reef (established summer 2024).
Quogue Oyster Reef Monitoring
Kim and Kate head out to monitor our Quogue Oyster Reef, collect scientific data, and clean the spat-on-shell oysters growing in our restoration raft. It may have been a rainy day for our dedicated staff, but not for the oysters. The reef is absolutely thriving!
Oyster Restoration Raft Installed at Quogue Stewardship Site
Installing Oyster Restoration Raft in the waters of our Quogue Stewardship Site. Spat-on-shell oysters will improve water quality as they filter feed and grow, and eventually be planted in Quogue Village waters to bolster our newly restored oyster reef!
Long Island Marine and Coastal Field Guide: A Trusty Companion on Land and at Sea- The Southampton Press
The Long Island Marine and Coastal Field Guide was created by Back to the Bays staff Carolyn Munaco and Hazel Wodehouse. Carolyn painted over 250 species for the field guide and Hazel classified each organism and wrote all of the information about each species, as well as detailed descriptions of Long Island's diverse marine habitats.
Full Article
Back to the Bays Marks a Milestone
2025 marks the 10-Year Anniversary of Cornell Cooperative Extension’s Back to the Bays Initiative!
2024 Impact Report
Read our 2024 Back to the Bays Impact Report for a full review of the our 2024 projects and progress.
Back to the Bays Midsummer Update
Our Back to the Bays Team has been busy to say the least this summer! The majority of our fieldwork, and plant and animal care in our shellfish and coastal plant nurseries takes place during these warm weather months. And it takes a lot of hard work to keep everything thriving and growing.