The mouth of the Chester River flows toward the mainstem of the Chesapeake Bay. Waters along the Eastern Shore are saltier than the western side of the Bay. (Photos by Will Parson/Chesapeake Bay Program)
This article and it's comments have been very helpful and informative.
There were so-called " Oyster Wars " in the late h and early h centuries. Until the mid-h century, oyster harvesting rivaled the crab industry among Chesapeake watermen, a dwindling breed whose skipjacks and other workboats were supplanted by recreational craft in the latter part of the century. The Chesapeake Bay forms a link in the Intracoastal Waterway, of the bays, sounds and inlets between the off-shore barrier islands and the coastal mainland along the Atlantic coast connecting the Chesapeake and Delaware Canal (linking the Bay to the north and the Delaware River ) with the Albemarle and Chesapeake Canal (linking the Bay, to the south, via the Elizabeth River, by the cities of Norfolk and Portsmouth to the Albemarle Sound and Pamlico Sound in North Carolina and further to the Sea Islands of Georgia). A busy shipping channel (dredged by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers since the 18) runs the length of the Bay, is an important transit route for large vessels entering or leaving the Port of Baltimore, and further north through the Chesapeake and Delaware Canal to the ports of Wilmington and Philadelphia on the Delaware River .
Very helpful. My reason for researching salinity of the bay at different locations is purely self interest. I may be moving tp Owings Mills and I own an aluminum (?) boat and using it in other than fresh or water of mild salinity will be an issue. I own what you would consider a small boat so this is not a major issue for me. I am just trying identifying potential issues for my boating, I am looking forward to exploring the bay.
This was soooo helpful!! Thank you so much for all your help!
I recently came back from a conference in Baltimore and wondered about this literally the entire time I was there. Short of tasting the water in the harbor, this provided me with EXACTLY what I was looking for!
Thank you.
Hi Jacob,
Great question! The salt in the ocean comes from the land as rain reacts with rock. Carbon dioxide in the air reacts with the water to form carbonic acid, a mild acid that breaks down the rock. Electrically charged particles called ions are formed, and the dissolved ions flow through the water to the oceans. Chloride and sodium, two of the most common ions in the seawater, are "salty." Rivers and streams are continually refreshed with springs and rain, but the ocean collects ions from all the rivers that flow into it and keeps them. As ions build up, the ocean becomes salty.
As more salt flows in, salt is also deposited out. As seawater evaporates, salt content increases. When it becomes oversaturated, the salt is deposited on land to become sedimentary rock. Some salt sinks to the ocean floor in sediment, reacts with lava or clay to be absorbed, or is sprayed up onto the land to be lost as salt deposits. The ocean ecosystem itself extracts some of the salt from the water, with some creatures using them to create their shells or mineral deposits in the ocean.
Together, the salt being lost and the salt flowing in has historically kept the oceans' salinity levels in balance. Intense storms, melting ice and increased rainfall can throw the salinity out of balance, disrupting ocean currents and temperatures.
can you add a section/ an article on where the salinity comes from and how it gets there. Thank you.
i found this very informing.
This was so helpful with my reaserch.
I wish this article was more helpful of where salinity areas are and how it affects some ecosystems. I have been doing a lot of research and this wasn't very helpful then I thought. Also for the young learners who are doing a research like me, fun fact crabs can change gender. WEIRD right!!! Also the bottom of a female crab who hasn't laid eggs have a less pointer bottom.
From everything I have learned about crabs in the bay, crabs grow better in less salty water. But females must migrate south to lay their eggs in saltier water. I have lived at the mouth of the Potomac River for 26 years, and have never seen a sook crab with eggs. I have witnessed plenty of sponge crabs at the mouth of the bay.
Wow this was SUPER helpful!
this article made me do good!
yay
This helped me so much on my research!
Thank you!
Your comment has been received. Before it can be published, the comment will be reviewed by our team to ensure it adheres with our rules of engagement.
Comments
This article and it's comments have been very helpful and informative.
There were so-called " Oyster Wars " in the late h and early h centuries. Until the mid-h century, oyster harvesting rivaled the crab industry among Chesapeake watermen, a dwindling breed whose skipjacks and other workboats were supplanted by recreational craft in the latter part of the century. The Chesapeake Bay forms a link in the Intracoastal Waterway, of the bays, sounds and inlets between the off-shore barrier islands and the coastal mainland along the Atlantic coast connecting the Chesapeake and Delaware Canal (linking the Bay to the north and the Delaware River ) with the Albemarle and Chesapeake Canal (linking the Bay, to the south, via the Elizabeth River, by the cities of Norfolk and Portsmouth to the Albemarle Sound and Pamlico Sound in North Carolina and further to the Sea Islands of Georgia). A busy shipping channel (dredged by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers since the 18) runs the length of the Bay, is an important transit route for large vessels entering or leaving the Port of Baltimore, and further north through the Chesapeake and Delaware Canal to the ports of Wilmington and Philadelphia on the Delaware River .
Very helpful. My reason for researching salinity of the bay at different locations is purely self interest. I may be moving tp Owings Mills and I own an aluminum (?) boat and using it in other than fresh or water of mild salinity will be an issue. I own what you would consider a small boat so this is not a major issue for me. I am just trying identifying potential issues for my boating, I am looking forward to exploring the bay.
This was soooo helpful!! Thank you so much for all your help!
I recently came back from a conference in Baltimore and wondered about this literally the entire time I was there. Short of tasting the water in the harbor, this provided me with EXACTLY what I was looking for!
Thank you.
Hi Jacob,
Great question! The salt in the ocean comes from the land as rain reacts with rock. Carbon dioxide in the air reacts with the water to form carbonic acid, a mild acid that breaks down the rock. Electrically charged particles called ions are formed, and the dissolved ions flow through the water to the oceans. Chloride and sodium, two of the most common ions in the seawater, are "salty." Rivers and streams are continually refreshed with springs and rain, but the ocean collects ions from all the rivers that flow into it and keeps them. As ions build up, the ocean becomes salty.
As more salt flows in, salt is also deposited out. As seawater evaporates, salt content increases. When it becomes oversaturated, the salt is deposited on land to become sedimentary rock. Some salt sinks to the ocean floor in sediment, reacts with lava or clay to be absorbed, or is sprayed up onto the land to be lost as salt deposits. The ocean ecosystem itself extracts some of the salt from the water, with some creatures using them to create their shells or mineral deposits in the ocean.
Together, the salt being lost and the salt flowing in has historically kept the oceans' salinity levels in balance. Intense storms, melting ice and increased rainfall can throw the salinity out of balance, disrupting ocean currents and temperatures.
can you add a section/ an article on where the salinity comes from and how it gets there. Thank you.
i found this very informing.
This was so helpful with my reaserch.
I wish this article was more helpful of where salinity areas are and how it affects some ecosystems. I have been doing a lot of research and this wasn't very helpful then I thought. Also for the young learners who are doing a research like me, fun fact crabs can change gender. WEIRD right!!! Also the bottom of a female crab who hasn't laid eggs have a less pointer bottom.
From everything I have learned about crabs in the bay, crabs grow better in less salty water. But females must migrate south to lay their eggs in saltier water. I have lived at the mouth of the Potomac River for 26 years, and have never seen a sook crab with eggs. I have witnessed plenty of sponge crabs at the mouth of the bay.
Wow this was SUPER helpful!
this article made me do good!
yay
This helped me so much on my research!
Thank you!
Your comment has been received. Before it can be published, the comment will be reviewed by our team to ensure it adheres with our rules of engagement.
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