Habitats

<body> <p>Home > Habitats -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- All plants and animals that live in the Chesapeake Bay region have specific needs that must be met in order for them to live here. An area has to have the right combination of food, light, temperature, water, nutrients, shelter and other necessities to be good habitat. In the Chesapeake Bay region, there are five major categories of habitat: forests, wetlands, streams and rivers, shallow water, aquatic reefs and open bay. Aquatic Reefs: An aquatic reef is a solid, three dimensional, highly structured ecological community with oysters as its dominant species which provides vital habitat for Bay species such as finfish, shellfish and crabs. They consist of densely packed individual oysters that grow upward and outward creating a hard surface over many acres of bay bottom and three-dimensional habitat. (learn more) Forest: Background | Forest Structure | Benefits of Forests | Partners | Riparian Forest Wetlands: Types of Wetlands | Functions and Value | Restoration and Preservation Streams & Rivers: General Overview Shallow Waters: General Overview | Tidal Marshes Aquatic Reefs: Definition and Overview | Ecological Role | As Habitat | Decline of Aquatic Reefs | Restoration Open Bay Waters: General Overview Forest Structure: The structure of the forest in the watershed is made of multiple layers that create multiple habitats for the Bay's abundant plant and animal species. Estuarine Wetlands: Include saltwater marshes and cedar swamps, experience periodic flooding by ocean-driven tides. Palustrine Wetlands: Are freshwater and are found along streams, lakes and ponds. Get Involved: How can you help restore habitats around the Bay? Habitat Preservation and Restoration: Chesapeake 2000 provides goals for habitat restoration, to preserve, protect and restore those habitats and natural areas that are vital to the survival and diversity of the living resources of the Bay and its rivers. (learn more) Other Sites of Interest: Discovery Channel: Aquatic Habitats lesson plan NOAA Chesapeake Bay Office: Habitat Conservation, Protection and Restoration Maryland DNR : Tidal Water and Habitat Quality Monitoring Natural Resources in the Chesapeake Bay: USGS looks at the Bay </body>