Research & Publications
Science Powered by Community Data
Sargassum Watch data has contributed to peer-reviewed research. Explore how our observations are advancing marine science. The following list of publications and presentations are listed whenever any of our data, in any capacity, gets used for research and education purposes. We try our best to keep track if even a single photo from our database gets used for a publication or presentation, as it helps measure our impact of the 'Sargassum Watch' Citizen Science Program to the scientific and broader community. If you are interested in using Sargassum Watch data for a publication, presentation, or other purpose, please contact us at sargassumgroup@gmail.com **prior to use**. Please review our data acknowledgment guidelines for requirements on citation and acknowledgment. If you have already used our data, please share the reference or link to your publication or presentation and a brief description of how the data were used.
Peer-Reviewed Publications using Sargassum Watch data
Assessing the interconnectivity across complex dimensions of monitoring pelagic species of Sargassum and the role of citizen science
Hatt, D. C., Arita, J.T., Bally, N. K., Iporac, L.A.R., and Collado-Vides, L.
Comprehensive Analysis of Biomass, Nutrient, and Heavy Metal Contributions of Pelagic Sargassum Species (Phaeophyceae) Inundations in South Florida
Hatt, D.C., Bally, N.K., Iporac, L.A.R., Olszak, S., Campbell, J.E., Collado-Vides, L.
Improving satellite monitoring of coastal inundations of pelagic Sargassum algae with wind and citizen science data
Putman, N.F., Beyea, R.T., Iporac, L.A.R., Triñanes, J., Ackerman, E.G., Olascoaga, M.J., Appendini, C.M., Arriaga, J., Collado-Vides, L., Lumpkin, R., Hu, C., Goni, G.
Community-based monitoring reveals spatiotemporal variation of sargasso inundation levels and morphotype dominance across the Caribbean and South Florida
Iporac, L.A.R., Hatt, D.C., Bally, N.K., Castro, A., Cardet, E., Mesidor, R., Olszak, S., Duran, A., Burkholder, D.A., Collado-Vides, L.
Monitoring pelagic Sargassum inundation potential for coastal communities
Trinanes, J., Putman, N.F., Goni, G., Hu, C., Wang, M.
Comparative spatiotemporal analysis of accumulated pelagic Sargassum landings using community science data
Castro, A., Cardet, E., Mesidor, R., Iporac, L.A.R., Blumenthal, J., Collado, L.
Lessons and Challenges in Piloting "Sargassum Watch," A Citizen Science Program to Monitor Pelagic Sargassum Landings in South Florida
Iporac, L.A.R., Olszak, S., Burkholder, D., Collado-Vides, L.
Real-World Impact
Who Uses Our Data
From forecast models to conservation maps, Sargassum Watch observations power real science and real decisions across the Caribbean and beyond.
Sargazo Watch
Live Sargassum Conditions Across the Caribbean
Sargazo Watch tracks and documents live sargassum conditions across the Riviera Maya, Florida, the Dominican Republic, and the wider Caribbean using two interactive maps. Built from daily beach photos, live webcams, visitor reports, and drone images, Sargassum Watch observations extend their coverage along the Florida coast.
Visit Sargazo WatchCoastal Signal
Beach Condition & Sargassum Arrival Forecasts
Coastal Signal builds beach condition forecasts, including sargassum arrival forecasts for beaches in Florida, Mexico, and the Caribbean. They use Sargassum Watch reports — dates, locations, and recent observations — to validate predicted arrival dates against real on-the-ground sightings, and use site photos to train machine learning models to detect sargassum in images.
Visit Coastal SignalVeabird
Year-Ahead Beach & Ski Conditions Forecasting
Veabird is a free beach and ski conditions site forecasting sargassum, water quality, waves, and crowds up to a year ahead for 1,400+ resorts across the Caribbean, Gulf of Mexico, Mexican Pacific, and Hawaii. Sargassum Watch citizen science observations help calibrate their seaweed forecasts against what visitors actually see on the beach.
Visit VeabirdAcademic Researchers
Peer-Reviewed Marine Science Publications
Sargassum Watch data has contributed to multiple peer-reviewed publications studying sargassum distribution, drift forecasting, and coastal impacts across the Atlantic and Caribbean. Our long-running, on-the-ground observation record is one of the few of its kind available to the scientific community.
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