Watershed

What is a watershed The land that water flows across or under on its way to a stream, river, or lake

How Does a Watershed Work? The landscape is made of many interconnected basins, watersheds. Within each watershed, all water runs to the lowest point - a stream, river, or lake. On it’s way, water must travel over farm fields,forest, lawns, city streets , or seeps into the soil and travels underground.

Are All Watersheds The Same? Not at all. They come in all shapes and sizes and can have all different land features.

Estuary An estuary is an unique environment where fresh water and salt water come together. Estuaries are found on the coast where a river or bay or other source of fresh water has access to the open sea.

Estuaries Chesapeake Bay is the largest of 130 estuaries in the United States. Rivers, streams and ground water drain into Chesapeake Bay where this fresh water mixes with the salt water from the Atlantic Ocean. This mixing of fresh water and salt water is what makes this an estuary.

Chesapeake Bay is shallow. It is only 21 feet deep on average Chesapeake Bay is shallow. It is only 21 feet deep on average. The Bay stretches from Havre De Grace, Maryland, to Norfolk, Virginia. The Bay itself is about 200 miles long, but the Bay along with its tributaries has a shoreline that measures approximately 11,684 miles in total. The Bay is very narrow at points (only 3.4 miles across near Aberdeen, Maryland). The Bay's widest point is 35 miles across near the mouth of the Potomac River.

Wetlands

Wetland Importance Wetlands slow the flow of water and the sun warms the water as it moves. The nutrients in the water increase the growth of microscopic creatures that serve as food for birds, fish, and other wildlife.

Wetland Importance Another reason why wetlands are important is that they serve as flood control. The wetlands are like a gigantic sponge.

Wetland Importance It absorbs water which keeps the surrounding areas from flooding. Wetlands prevent destruction of property and death caused by raging storm waters.

Wetland Importance The abundance of nutrients, aquatic vegetation, and calm, shallow water makes wetlands one of the most productive environments.

Wetland importance During times when there is a lot of rain, large amounts of silt and other pollutants drift downstream. Runoff like this usually kills offshore reefs, and pollutes rivers and streams. But wetlands break down these pollutants. Wetlands also catch mud and dirt that flow downstream to coastal areas.

How can wetlands be recognized? three characteristics of wetlands when making wetland determinations: vegetation soil hydrology

What Is a Wetland? Area occurs in a floodplain or otherwise has low spots in which water stands at or above the soil surface during the growing season.

Identifying A Wetland Area has plant communities that commonly occur in areas having standing water for part of the growing season (e.g., cypress-gum swamps, cordgrass marshes, cattail marshes, bulrush and tule marshes, and sphagnum bogs).

Identifying A Wetland Area has soils that are called peats or mucks Area is periodically flooded by tides, even if only by strong, wind-driven, or spring tides.

Wetland Vegetation you can usually determine if wetland vegetation is present by knowing a relatively few plant types that commonly occur in your area. For example, cattails, bulrushes, cordgrass, sphagnum moss, bald cypress, willows, mangroves, sedges, rushes, arrowheads, and water plantains usually occur in wetlands.

Vegetation in a Wetland Other indicators of plants growing in wetlands include trees having shallow root systems, swollen trunks (e.g., bald cypress, tupelo gum), or roots found growing from the plant stem or trunk above the soil surface.

Soil in a Wetland HYDRIC SOILS, have characteristics that indicate they were developed in conditions where soil oxygen is limited by the presence of saturated soil for long periods during the growing season.

Hydric Soil Indicators Soil consists predominantly of decomposed plant material (peats or mucks). Soil has a thick layer of decomposing plant material on the surface. Soil has a bluish gray or gray color below the surface, or the major color of the soil at this depth is dark (brownish black or black) and dull.

Hydric Soil Indicators Soil has the odor of rotten eggs. Soil is sandy and has a layer of decomposing plant material at the soil surface. Soil is sandy and has dark stains or dark streaks of organic material in the upper layer below the soil surface. These streaks are decomposed plant material attached to the soil particles. When soil from these streaks is rubbed between the fingers, a dark stain is left on the fingers.

Wetlands Hydrology Wetland hydrology refers to the presence of water at or above the soil surface for a sufficient period of the year to significantly influence the plant types and soils that occur in the area.

Wetlands Hydrology Indicators Standing or flowing water is observed on the area during the growing season. Soil is waterlogged during the growing season. Water marks are present on trees or other erect object. Such marks indicate that water periodically covers the area to the depth shown on the objects.

Wetlands Hydrology Indicators Drift lines, which are small piles of debris oriented in the direction of water movement through an area, are present. These often occur along contours and represent the approximate extent of flooding in an area. Debris is lodged in trees or piled against other object by water. Thin layers of sediments are deposited on leaves or other objects. Sometimes these become consolidated with small plant parts to form discernible crust on the soil surface.