authorities with statutory responsibility for their management. They argue that: (1) Seagrass meadows provide valuable nursery habitat to over 1/5th of the world's largest 25 fisheries, including walleye pollock, the most landed species on the planet. (2) In complex small‐scale fisheries from around the world (poorly represented in fisheries statistics), there is evidence that many of those in proximity to seagrass are supported to a large degree by these habitats. (3) Intertidal fishing activity in seagrass is a global phenomenon, often directly supporting human livelihoods. According to the study, seagrasses should be recognized and managed to maintain and maximize their role in global fisheries production. In 2022, Jones et al showed seagrass associated small-scale fisheries can provide a safety net for the poor, and are used more commonly than reef-associated fisheries across the Indo-Pacific. Nearly half the people interviewed in the study preferred fishing in seagrass, since their function as a nursery habitat could result in large and reliable catches of fish. In the oceans, gleaning can be defined as fishing with basic gear, including bare hands, in shallow water not deeper than that one can stand. Invertebrate gleaning (walking) fisheries are common within intertidal seagrass meadows globally, contributing to the food supply of hundreds of millions of people, but understanding of these fisheries and their ecological drivers are extremely limited. A 2019 study by Nessa et al. analysed these fisheries using a combined social and ecological approach. Catches were dominated by bivalves, sea urchins and gastropods. The catch per unit effort (CPUE) in all sites varied from 0.05 to 3 kg per gleaner per hour, with the majority of fishers being women and children. Landings were of major significance for local food supply and livelihoods at all sites. Local ecological knowledge suggests seagrass meadows are declining in line with other regional trends. Increasing seagrass density significantly and positively correlated with CPUE of the invertebrate gleaning highlighting the importance of conserving these threatened habitats. Habitats for other species Other services Historically, seagrasses were collected as fertilizer for sandy soil. This was an important use in the Aveiro Lagoon, Portugal, where the plants collected were known as moliço. In the early 20th century, in France and, to a lesser extent, the Channel Islands, dried seagrasses were used as a mattress (paillasse) filling – such mattresses were in high demand by French forces during World War I. It was also used for