Submerged aquatic vegetation is a complex consisting primarily of seagrasses and other submerged aquatic plants.
The photo at right shows a shiner surfperch in eelgrass (courtesy of Battelle).
Controlling factors that affect submerged aquatic vegetation:
Currents
Elevation/Depth/Bathymetry
Hydrodynamics
Light
Nutrients
Salinity
Sediment Quality
Temperature
Turbidity
Ecosystem processes that are affected by submerged aquatic vegetation:
Primary Production
Food Web Support
Refuge
Element Cycling
Successional Development
