Skip to main content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Discovering Connections Across America's Lands and Waters

Read more

USGS Chesapeake Accomplishments and Highlights for 2024

Find out more

Susquehanna River Story

What does the science say about water quality?

Watch Video

Road salt elevates salinity above background levels in freshwater streams and rivers across the Chesapeake Bay Watershed

Find out more

Wastewater and landscape sources contributing to pesticide contamination

Potomac River watershed

Find out more

PFAS found in Smallmouth Bass throughout the mid-Atlantic United States

Read more

Publications

Discover Chesapeake related science in reports and journal articles authored by USGS scientists

Go to Pubs

Chesapeake Bay Activities

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.

View our latest publications

USGS Chesapeake Accomplishments and Highlights for 2024

Technician, wearing life jacket, on riverbank reaching up to use cableway to collect water sample

As a home to 18 million people and a destination for countless visitors seeking recreational opportunities, the heath of the Chesapeake Bay watershed is of critical importance. The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) is a leading provider of data-driven insights about the condition of the watershed’s lands, waters, fish, and wildlife.

Read more

Susquehanna River Story — What does the science say about water quality?

Screenshot image showing title of video, USGS identifier, and photo of broad river with shoreline and sky

The wide and majestic Susquehanna River is one of the oldest rivers in the world and provides water for over 4 million people.  Despite its beauty, the Susquehanna River and the Chesapeake Bay downstream has been facing the detrimental effects of excess nutrients (nitrogen and phosphorus).

Read more

Quick Links

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.

News

Could treating acid mine drainage be causing problems downstream?

Could treating acid mine drainage be causing problems downstream?

USGS Releases Geonarrative Highlighting Water Quality Monitoring Efforts in the Chiques and Swatara Creek Watersheds

USGS Releases Geonarrative Highlighting Water Quality Monitoring Efforts in the Chiques and Swatara Creek Watersheds

How do you map the bottom of river?

How do you map the bottom of river?

View All

Publications

Reproductive parameters in invasive blue catfish (Ictalurus furcatus) from tributaries of the Chesapeake Bay in Maryland and Delaware, 2020–22

Over the past few decades, Ictalurus furcatus (Valenciennes in Cuvier and Valenciennes, 1840; blue catfish) have become a formidable invasive species in tidal tributaries of the Chesapeake Bay in Maryland and Delaware. Knowledge of their reproductive behaviors can support managers in the determination of ideal timing and implementation of mitigation strategies. In 2020–22, the U.S...
Authors
Heather L. Walsh, Christine L. Densmore, Amy M. Regish, Jessica Norstog, Johnny Moore, Branson Williams, Noah Bressman, Zachary Crum
By
Chesapeake Bay Activities, Eastern Ecological Science Center

Common Terns (Sterna hirundo) use of a staging site in the Chesapeake Bay

In 2021, we initiated fieldwork to assess the relative importance of a staging area for Sterna hirundo (Common Tern) at a pier at the confluence of the Patuxent River and Chesapeake Bay, MD. During the post-breeding periods of 2021 through 2023, we resighted 378 banded Common Terns at this staging area, with individuals originating from 6 breeding colonies. Most banded individuals were...
Authors
Benjamin Springer, Jeffery D. Sullivan, Diann J. Prosser, Kyle Rambo, J. Jordan Price
By
Chesapeake Bay Activities, Eastern Ecological Science Center

The state of the science and practice of stream restoration in the Chesapeake: Lessons learned to inform better implementation, assessment and outcomes

The Chesapeake Bay Program’s (CBP) Science and Technical Advisory Committee (STAC) organized and led a workshop on the science and practice of stream restoration in order to summarize the state of knowledge in order to identify ways to improve stream restoration outcomes. The workshop identified a general framework for explaining the main factors leading to stream restoration outcomes...
Authors
Gregory Noe, Neely Law, Joel Berger, Solange Filoso, Sadie Drescher, L. Fraley-McNeal, Ben Hayes, Paul Mayer, Chris Ruck, Bill Stack, Rich Starr, Scott Stranko, Tess Thompson
By
Chesapeake Bay Activities, Florence Bascom Geoscience Center
View All

Science

link
Photo of desert landscape with arch formations in foreground and mountains in background

Discovering Connections Across America's Lands and Waters

Through collaboration and coordination, USGS research helps preserve and restore America’s most iconic landscapes. We apply insights across ecosystems to understand how these systems function and change, helping natural resource managers protect our Nation’s natural heritage for generations to come.
By
Climate Adaptation Science Centers, Land Management Research Program, Chesapeake Bay Activities
link

Discovering Connections Across America's Lands and Waters

Through collaboration and coordination, USGS research helps preserve and restore America’s most iconic landscapes. We apply insights across ecosystems to understand how these systems function and change, helping natural resource managers protect our Nation’s natural heritage for generations to come.
Learn More
link
Hydrologic technician Fisseha Mengistu reels in a sampling bottle.

USGS Chesapeake Accomplishments and Highlights for 2024

As a home to 18 million people and a destination for countless visitors seeking recreational opportunities, the heath of the Chesapeake Bay watershed is of critical importance. The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) is a leading provider of data-driven insights about the condition of the watershed’s lands, waters, fish, and wildlife. These insights and our collaborative work with partners throughout...
By
Chesapeake Bay Activities
link

USGS Chesapeake Accomplishments and Highlights for 2024

As a home to 18 million people and a destination for countless visitors seeking recreational opportunities, the heath of the Chesapeake Bay watershed is of critical importance. The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) is a leading provider of data-driven insights about the condition of the watershed’s lands, waters, fish, and wildlife. These insights and our collaborative work with partners throughout...
Learn More
link
Chesapeake Bay Watershed Index Map for Susquehanna River

Pennsylvania and the Chesapeake Bay Watershed

USGS provides monitoring, analysis, modeling and research on streams and water quality to better understand the fate and transport of nutrients and sediment to the Susquehanna and other rivers, and their tributaries, and eventually to the Chesapeake Bay. Additional research focuses on emerging contaminants and other stressors that effect human and aquatic life in the watershed and estuary.
By
Chesapeake Bay Activities, Pennsylvania Water Science Center
link

Pennsylvania and the Chesapeake Bay Watershed

USGS provides monitoring, analysis, modeling and research on streams and water quality to better understand the fate and transport of nutrients and sediment to the Susquehanna and other rivers, and their tributaries, and eventually to the Chesapeake Bay. Additional research focuses on emerging contaminants and other stressors that effect human and aquatic life in the watershed and estuary.
Learn More
View All
Was this page helpful?