Definition of "eelgrass" [eel•grass]

• Any of several submersed aquatic plants of the genus Vallisneria. Also called tape grass, wild celery. (noun)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "In the Multi-Use Area, which constitutes nearly two-thirds of the planning area, strong new protections are established for critical species like rare marine mammals and avifauna and for critical habitat such as eelgrass beds and submerged rocky areas."
• "While exploding microalgal populations deprive the eelgrass of light, larger algae, such as sea lettuce, multiply, sink to the bottom, decay, and smother eelgrass and fish habitat."
• "Caught in the middle is the Washington State Noxious Weed Control Board, which floats a possible compromise - list Japanese eelgrass as a noxious weed but only on commercial shellfish beds."