Oceanography Salt Marshes
Salt marshes are coastal wetlands rich in marine life, which are covered by water at least once per month. They are found in the intertidal zones along low-energy coastlines, forming along the margins of estuaries, where freshwater from the land mixes with seawater. These marshes can be found near the Great South Bay and the Long Island Sound. The entire south shore of Long Island is considered to be a salt marsh important to the health of the marine life. Beginning in Jamaica Bay and extending to Montauk Point, Long Islands salt marches help remove toxic chemicals that are caused by pollution, thus making them a vital part of the eco-system.
The Salt Marshes contain different types of grasses that grow out of the water and along the water's edge. This grass can be seen when the tide is low and is covered by water when the tide comes in. This grass helps hold the soil together by dispersing any wave energy and creating a breeding ground for many important marine animals. Also, the plants act as a natural filter, removing any chemicals that might be in the seawater. Some of the plants that are found in salt marshes are: Salt Marsh Grass or Spartina Alterniflora and Cord grass as well as reeds, sedges and golden rod.
At low tide, nutrient-rich water flows from the marsh back into the sea, feeding the plankton upon which all other life depends. Peat, which is what the march is mostly made of, is very absorbent. In some areas, it limits coastal flooding by containing the water that comes in during a very high or storm-driven tide. Peat also acts as a filter, cleaning water by removing various compounds and either storing or breaking them down.
The salt marsh is also an important breeding ground for many species of marine life. These animals use the marsh and its tall grasses for protection from predators. Some of the marine life is: clams, mussels, shrimp, oysters and small fishes such as killies and spearing. Some mammals use the salt marsh also. These animals include: mice, skunks and many, many species of water fowl. These animals use the marsh not only as a home, but as a place to find food as well.
There are destructive forces at work against the salt marsh. While a slowly rising sea level has had some effect, the greatest destruction of salt marshes that has taken place is urban and suburban development.
On Wednesday, February 15th, I was able to have the opportunity to listen to Andrew Lipman. Andrew Lipman is the author of The Saltwater Frontier: Indians and the Contest for the American Coast. In the novel, he explained the life of Native Americans living in New England and on the coast of Long Island. During this time, most individuals relied on trading natural resources. In order for profit for the resources, the colonists and Native Americans used wampum. Wampum was used as a sacred gift in Native American culture as a peace offering, funerals and marriages. Colonialists had an advantage towards using wampum. They used beads as a commodity for furs. Native Americans relied on canoes for transportation. Canoes can hold up to fifty people.
The Chesapeake Bay is a large estuary located on the east coast of the United States. The bay is over 200 miles long and goes through Delaware, Maryland, New York, Pennsylvania, Virginia and West Virginia. The bay has much to offer the locals. Many locals have made a career out of harvesting the bay's sea food. The bay's harvest and many of its other attractions bring tourists and in turn revenue for the area. Oysters and blue crab are a big part of the culture in the bay area. However, these organisms are in danger and need help.
The Long Island Sound is an estuary, and is in fact one of the largest in the world. An estuary is a place where salt water from the ocean mixes with fresh water from the rivers that drain from the land. Moreover, like other estuaries, the Long Island Sound has an abundance of fish and other waterfowl that add to the natural balance of the island, as well as one of the most important economic factors (Tedesco). Like other estuaries around the world, the Sound provides breeding, feeding, nesting, and nursery areas for many species that will spend most of their adult lives in the oceans (Long Island Sound Study). Despite these similarities to other estuaries, the Long Island Sound is unique from anywhere else in the world. Unlike other estuaries, the Long Island Sound does not just have one connection to the sea but it has two. It has two major sources of fresh water flowing into the bay that empty into the ocean. It combines this two-...
The Chesapeake Bay is a large bay that stretches from Maryland to Virginia, fed by many rivers and streams that run from as far north as New York to Virginia and West Virginia.5 It is home to a plethora of plants and fish species, many of which the people of the area fish for food and supplies. The pollution present in the Chesapeake Bay is affecting the livelihood of both the fishermen and the fish – the less the fishermen haul due to the death of the species they catch, the less they get paid – and as consumers of these fish, we are consuming the toxins as well.
One of the Bays biggest resources is its oysters. Oysters are filter feeders which mean they feed on agley and clean the water. The oysters feed on agley and other pollutants in the bay turning them into food for them, then they condense the food down to nutrient and developed things like pearls.Filtering the water also helps the oyster to grow. One oyster can filter 50 gallons of water a day, Oysters used to be able to filter the Bay in about a week. However these creatures are now scarce in the bay. The Chesapeake Bays Oyster (crassostrea virginica) Population has declined severely because of over harvesting, agricultural runoff, and disease. Now the Chesapeake Bay is becoming polluted without the oysters and the water is not nearly as clean as it once was. The Chesapeake Bay was the first estuary in the nation to be targeted for restoration as an integrated watershed and ecosystem. (Chesapeake Bay Program n/d). This report will show the cause and effect of the Chesapeake Bay's Oyster decline on the Bay.
Mangrove roots collect sediments and slow down the water's flow, helping to protect the coastline and preventing erosion overtime. Over a long period of time, the roots can collect enough debris and mud to extend the edge of the coastline further out. Mangroves are teeming with life. Shorebirds, Soldier Crabs, Crab-Eating Monkeys, and fishing cats all make the mangrove home or habitat. Mangroves provide a safe place to live or home and a nursery for a variety of fish, birds, crustaceans, and
5. Kellert, S.R. and E.O. Wilson, editors. 1993 The Biophilia Hypothesis. Island Press, Washington, DC
Many of the Chesapeake Bay’s inhabitants are unaware of the destruction they are triggering. The Chesapeake Bay is a local estuary in the watershed near our home in Loudoun County Virginia. With its monumental size, various problems occurring are anticipated. Pollution is the leading factor in this great body of water’s downfall. Without proper control being taken, this neighboring site of leisure, food resource, and tourist income will suffer and continue to decline. The cleanliness of the Chesapeake Bay is declining over time causing harm to many species that call the Bay their home.
The Chesapeake Bay is a lively and diverse estuary-- it holds our famous blue crabs, oysters, scallops, fish, 87 species of waterbirds, and over 3,600 species of plants. Any impact that we have on the oceans and the bay greatly affect the life and health of not only the bay, but also the many diverse species of seafood and fauna that exist in the bay.
Over the past 100 years the Louisiana coastline has suffered greatly from biotic, abiotic, and anthropogenic factors. The abiotic factors include things such as hurricanes or overnutrition that influence the surrounding biota. The biotic factors that contribute to coastal erosion are things like the immigration invasive species and the emigration or extinction of local flora and fauna that help preserve the wetlands. Additionally, there are anthropogenic factors such as pollution that can have strong negative influences on the abiotic and biotic factors of the wetlands. Each one of these factors cause ecological disturbances to the wetlands at a frequency and intensity that is unmanageable for the local flora and fauna. There are currently certain measures that are being taken into consideration to slow or stop the erosion of the Louisiana coastline.
Not only are they a critical part of the bays ecosystem, but they serve as a primary food source for humans living near the bay. Some examples of fish from the Chesapeake Bay Program website include: Striped bass, Atlantic Croaker, Atlantic Sturgeon, and even Sandbar Sharks. Fish are at the top of the food chain in the chesapeake bay and they take a large responsibility in keep the ecosystem in check. Some fish feed on almost any living organism they can find while others search the bottom for smaller nutrients. Fish even serve as a food source for scavengers such as birds living along the
Analysis of sites in five coastal states indicate that many marshes and mangrove ecosystems receive adequate mineral sediments to produce enough organic sediment and root material to remain above sea level at the present rate of sea-level rise (1-2 mm per year globally). However, three of the twelve wetlands studied were not keeping pace with the current rate of sea-level rise. If sea-level rise accelerates, some additional sites would also begin to slowly deteriorate and submerge.
Then you have to add the amount of traffic that comes through these canals every day. All of the traffic that is passing through the canals makes the land erosion even worse because the soil is already loose and unstable and the more salt water splashed against it every day causes it to get worse and makes more land erode (Barnowski). The salt water that gets out of the canals goes deeper into the wetlands than it would ever naturally go and that kills off
The Aral sea used to be the forth largest inland body of water. It had a fishing industry that employed 60,000 people and it attracted thousands of tourists. Today the Aral Sea is biologically dead and has shrunk by approximately 75-80% in volume and 50-60% in area. (See Attachment 1. The chronology of the desiccation of the Aral Sea). Fishing towns such as Muinak are now 60 kilometers inland. Approximately 75 million tons per year of toxic salt from the exposed seabed are blown over thousands of kilometers of inhabited land increasing the already high level of salinity and worsening the environmental situation.
Tides are common features of the ocean. Tides occur when large bodies water rise and fall, because of the gravitational pull of the moon and the sun. Spring tides are especially strong tides; in spite of the name they have nothing to do with the season spring. They occur when the Earth, the sun, and the moon are in a line. Spring tides occur during the full moon and the new moon. Neap tides are especially weak tides. They occur when the gravitational forces of the moon and the sun are perpendicular to one another. When water moves from side to side, it is called a current. Currents move warm and cold water to different parts of the ocean.