In agreement with the large variability in seagrass morphology and the nutrient pools in the bay, significant spatial variations were also observed in the seagrass tissue P contents. The spatial pattern suggested two main trends. The first trend was a decrease in the P content of the plants from the entrance of the bay southeastward into the bay. The second pattern was a decrease in the P content with an increase in the distance from the shore on the southern side of the Xincun Bay. These two patterns almost mirrored the nutrient concentration in the environment. With a high availability of nutrients, seagrass can assimilate and store excess nutrients in their tissues, thereby increasing their total nutrient content