Seagrasses are ecological cornerstones in marine environments. They form vast underwater meadows and are considered one of the world's most productive ecosystems. Most seagrasses are clonal. Because of this, sexual reproduction in this group has mostly been overlooked. However, they do produce flowers that are tucked down in among their leaves. The production of flowers coupled with a surprising amount of genetic diversity have led some researchers to take a closer look at their reproduction.

A team of researchers based out of the National Autonomous University of Mexico decided to look at potential pollen vectors in Thalassia testudinum, a dominant seagrass species throughout the Caribbean and western Atlantic regions. T. tetidinum is dioecious, producing male and female flowers are separate plants. Flowers open for short periods of time and males produce pollen in sticky, mucilaginous strands. The research team had noticed that a wonderfully diverse group of aquatic animals visit these flowers during the night and began to wonder if it was possible that at least some of these could be effective pollinators.