Chesapeake Bay Activities
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The Chesapeake Bay is our Nation’s largest estuary and provides over $100 billion in annual economic value. The USGS works with Federal, State, local, and academic partners to provide research and monitoring and to communicate results to inform management for the Chesapeake and other important landscapes across the Nation. See our Science page to learn about our themes and topics being addressed.
Green Stormwater Infrastructure to Reduce Suburban Runoff
Across the United States, suburban development is replacing agricultural and forested lands. In urban and suburban areas, large amounts of stormwater runoff are generated from rooftops and roadways during rain events.
Find out moreRecord Freshwater Flow in WY 2019 Affects Conditions in the Bay
The USGS reports that freshwater flow into the Chesapeake Bay during water year (WY) 2019 was the highest flow on record.
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Learn more about USGS science activities in the Bay from our Science Strategy. Additional summaries of the USGS Chesapeake Bay Activities are available in the science topics section.
Science Features, Summaries, and Videos
USGS Chesapeake Bay Science Fact Sheet
Chesapeake Bay Activities Bibliography
News
Freshwater flows to Bay highest in 82 years of monitoring
Bay Journal — by Karl Blankenship — December 02, 2019
Bay health impacted by record flows
Chesapeake Bay Program — by Dylan Reynolds — November 26, 2019
The Chesapeake Bay gets some good news
EARTH Magazine — by Mary Caperton Morton — November 4, 2019
Publications
The effects of restored hydrologic connectivity on floodplain trapping vs. release of phosphorus, nitrogen, and sediment along the Pocomoke River, Maryland USA
River channelization and artificial levees have decreased the hydrologic connectivity of river-floodplain systems around the world. In response, restoration through enhancing connectivity has been advocated to improve the functions of floodplains, but uncertain benefits and the possibility of phosphate release from re-flooded soils has limited...
Noe, Gregory B.; Boomer, Kathy; Gillespie, Jaimie; Hupp, Cliff R.; Martin-Alciati, Mario; Floro, Kelly; Schenk, Edward R.; Jacobs, Amy K.; Strano, Steve Individual behaviour and resource use of thermally stressed brook trout Salvelinus fontinalis portend the conservation potential of thermal refugia
Individual aggression and thermal refuge use were monitored in brook trout Salvelinus fontinalis in a controlled laboratory to determine how fish size and personality influence time spent in forage and thermal habitat patches during periods of thermal stress. On average, larger and more exploratory fish initiated more aggressive...
White, Shannon L.; Kline, B.C.; Hitt, Nathaniel; Wagner, Tyler Typha (cattail) invasion in North American wetlands: Biology, regional problems, impacts, ecosystem services, and management
Typha is an iconic wetland plant found worldwide. Hybridization and anthropogenic disturbances have resulted in large increases in Typha abundance in wetland ecosystems throughout North America at a cost to native floral and faunal biodiversity. As demonstrated by three regional case studies, Typha is capable of rapidly colonizing habitats and...
Bansal, Sheel; Lishawa, Shane; Newman, Sue; Tangen, Brian A.; Wilcox, Douglas A.; Albert, Dennis; Anteau, Michael J.; Chimney, Michael J; Cressey, Ryann L.; DeKeyser, Edward S.; Elgersam, Kenneth J; Finkelstein, Sarah A; Freeland, Joanna; Grosshans, Richard; Klug, Page E.; Larkin, Daniel J; Lawrence, Beth A; Linz, George; Marburger, Joy; Noe, Gregory B.; Otto, Clint R. V.; Reo, Nicholas; Richards, Jennifer; Richardson, Curtis J.; Rodgers, LeRoy; Shrank, Amy J; Svedarsky, Dan; Travis, Steven E.; Tuchman, Nancy; van der Valk, Arnold; Windham-Myers, Lisamarie