Water for Virginia Master Naturalists: Estuaries & Coasts

Francis J. Reilly, Jr.

Chesapeake Bay Watershed

Types of surface water Ephemeral streams – vernal pools Puddles Streams Ponds Lakes Rivers Estuaries Oceans

Pollution Sources Point Source Name some sources Non-Point Source Name some sources

Pollution Types Sediment Nutrients Animal Waste Pesticides Salts Toxicants Thermal

Pollution Sources Sediment Nutrients Animal Waste Pesticides Salts Toxicants Thermal

Nutrients N-P-K Sources? Air is the major source! Sinks

Which are the Biggies for us? Sediment Nutrients Animal Waste Pesticides Salts Toxicants Thermal

Chesapeake Bay Pollutants

Types of Toxicity Acute Cancer Birth Defects Endocrine Disruptors Chronic Bioaccumulation Biomagnification

Measuring Pollution Chemistry/Laboratory/Bioassay Effects Global effects Less fish landings – global warming Ecological assays Macroinvertebrate assays - surveys Secondary effects Low DO – Cloudy water

Chesapeake Bay - How’s It Doing Lets look at some systems indicative of condition: SAV submerged aquatic vegetation Striped Bass Blue crabs Oysters

Chesapeake Bay - How’s It Doing SAV IS recovering

Chesapeake Bay - How’s It Doing Striped Bass

Chesapeake Bay - How’s It Doing Blue Crabs

Chesapeake Bay - How’s It Doing Oysters

Impacts of Pollution Toxicity Food contamination Habitat destruction Habitat degradation Cascading Effects

Habitats at risk Clear water habitats SAV Wetlands Oyster reef

Water Quality Healthy vs. Unhealthy Sunlight Healthy Habitat Unhealthy Habitat Balanced Algae Growth Minimal Nitrogen, Phosphorus and Sediment Inputs Excessive Nitrogen, Phosphorus and Sediment Inputs Healthy Bay Grasses Reduced Bay Grasses Algae Die-off Algae Decomposition No Oxygen Lack of Benthic Community Benthic Community Healthy Oyster Reef Adequate Oxygen Algal Bloom Barren Oyster Reef

What is an Estuary? ?

What is an Estuary? Where salt water blends with fresh Where the river meets the sea ?

What is an Estuary? the wide part of a river where it nears the sea; fresh and salt water mix wordnet.princeton.edu/perl/webwn An estuary is a semi-enclosed coastal body of water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea. Estuaries are often associated with high rates of biological productivity. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Estuary The thin zone along a coastline where freshwater systems and rivers meet and mix with a salty ocean (such as a bay, mouth of a river, salt marsh, lagoon). A semi-enclosed body of water which has a free connection to the open sea and within which seawater is measurably diluted by fresh water derived from land drainage. An inlet or arm of the sea, especially the wide mouth of a river, where the tide meets the current. A semi-enclosed coastal body of water which has a free connection with the open sea and where fresh water derived from land drainage (usually mouths of rivers) is mixed with seawater; often subject to tidal action and cyclic fluctuations in salinity. biology.usgs.gov/s+t/SNT/noframe/zy198.htm the part of the wide lower course of a river where it is met by the sea an environment where terrestrial, freshwater, and seawater (saline) habitats overlap A complex ecosystem between a river and near-shore ocean waters where fresh and salt water mix. These brackish areas include bays, mouths of rivers, salt marshes, wetlands, and lagoons and are influenced by tides and currents a place where fresh and salt water mix, such as a bay, salt marsh, or where a river enters an ocean. mvhs1.mbhs.edu/riverweb/glossary.html The broad lower course of a river that is encroached on by the sea and affected by the tides. usinfo.state.gov/products/pubs/geography/glossary.htm Semi-enclosed coastal waters at the junctions of rivers with ocean habitats, for example littoral basins, bays, inlets and harbours. Estuaries have a high biological productivity due to nutrient delivery and mixing processes A place where freshwater and salt water meet (ie where a river meets the ocean or the Gulf of Mexico). sofia.usgs.gov/virtual_tour/glossary.html A coastal body of water that connects to the oceans so that fresh water from a river mixes with saltwater from the oceans, such as in the Chesapeake Bay. mdk12.org/instruction/curriculum/science/glossary.shtml the part of a river where fresh water meets the sea and is affected by tides activities.macmillanmh.com/science/ca/grade6/glossary/e.html An estuary is where a river meets the sea. EUPHAUSIID Euphausiids are small, plentiful, shrimp-like, crustaceans that live in the open ocean. They are about 1 inch (2.5 cm) long. a water passage where the tide meets a river current, especially at the lower end of a river The area where fresh and salt water mix at the mouth of a river, used as rearing and feeding habitat by many fish species and other animals. Mouth of a river where its fresh water mixes with salt water and is affected by tides. Mouth of a river, where fresh river water mixes with the seawater. the area where a river empties into an ocean; a bay, influenced by the ocean tides, resulting in a mixture of salt water and fresh water. A bay that formed when a broad river valley was submerged by rising sea level or a sinking coast. eobglossary.gsfc.nasa.gov/Library/glossary.php3 a bay or inlet, often at the mouth of a river, in which large quantities of freshwater and seawater mix together. These unique habitats are necessary nursery grounds for many marine fishes and shellfishes. where river currents meet and are influenced by oceanic tides montereybay.noaa.gov/educate/teachercurriculum/glossary.html 1. The portion of a river that is affected by tides. 2. A semi-enclosed body of water where the salinity of ocean water is measurably reduced by freshwater input. Estuaries are very important nursery regions for many coastal ocean species of fish and invertebrates. amsglossary.allenpress.com/glossary/browse An arm of the sea at the mouth of a river. A place where fresh (non-salty) water enters the sea, such as at a river mouth. sciencebulletins.amnh.org/bio/f/sprawl /glossary/index.php

What is an Estuary? the wide part of a river where it nears the sea; fresh and salt water mix An estuary is a semi-enclosed coastal body of water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea. Estuaries are often associated with high rates of biological productivity. A semi-enclosed body of water which has a free connection to the open sea and within which seawater is measurably diluted by fresh water derived from land drainage A semi-enclosed coastal body of water which has a free connection with the open sea and where fresh water derived from land drainage (usually mouths of rivers) is mixed with seawater; often subject to tidal action and cyclic fluctuations in salinity.

What is an Estuary? Old Woman Creek Reserve, Ohio First NERR – 1980 Smallest – 571 A No salt water Tides? So what dies it have in common with the Chesapeake?

What is an Estuary? the wide part of a river where it nears the sea; fresh and salt water mix An estuary is a semi-enclosed coastal body of water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea. Estuaries are often associated with high rates of biological productivity. A semi-enclosed body of water which has a free connection to the open sea and within which seawater is measurably diluted by fresh water derived from land drainage A semi-enclosed coastal body of water which has a free connection with the open sea and where fresh water derived from land drainage (usually mouths of rivers) is mixed with seawater; often subject to tidal action and cyclic fluctuations in salinity.

Chesapeake Bay Largest in US Maybe largest in the world

Tides Spring Tide Neap Tide Daily cycle High and low tide

Lunar Tidal Day

Tides So What?

Tidal Action

Tides So What? Intertidal zone Tidal flats Tidal wetlands

Intertidal Zone - Vertical

Zonation

Tidal Marsh – Sea Level Rise

Intertidal Zone Horizontal

Salt Water

Shoals Point No Point Light 6 miles north of Mouth of Potomac

Depths

Benthos/ Soft Bottoms

Eel Grass Beds

Shell Fish Beds

Oysters

More Oysters

Oyster Reef

Fisheries

You can’t eat ‘em all

Other Important Bay Denizens

Blue Crabs – Callinectes sapidus

Waves – the Beach Waves “break” at 1/7 th Lambda Build or erode beaches “decide” what is on the beach

The Beach

Barrier Island Ecology

Dune Change Shape

The Dune

Inter Dunes

Back Side