ESTUARIES

1. What is an estuary?

• Partially enclosed body of water where saltwater mixes with freshwater

• Saltwater + freshwater = BRACKISH • Where rivers meet oceans. • Located in the Intertidal Zone.

2. Name some different bodies of water that are types of estuaries?

• sloughs, bays, harbors, sounds, inlets and bayous

3. What’s the name of the larges NC estuary?

EVER HEARD OF NEW YORK CITY?Well it’s an estuary

4. Estuaries Importance – Biodiversity

• Estuaries are among the most biologically productive ecosystems on the planet.

• That means estuaries are home to more living things than most other places on Earth.

• LOTS OF BIODIVERSITY!

4. Estuaries Importance – Ocean’s Nursery

• More than two thirds of the fish and shellfish we eat spend some part of their lives in estuaries.

• Many animals spend their “childhood” in estuaries.

• ESTUARIES = OCEAN’S NURSERY

Baby shark – in estuary Adult shark – in ocean

4. Estuaries Importance – Filter

• They act as filters for terrestrial pollutants and provide protection from flooding.

• This means estuaries SPONGE UP POLLUTION coming from the land from getting into the oceans.

ESTUARY

ESTUARY

ESTUARIES ACT LIKE A SPONGE

LOTS of POLLUTIONLESS POLLUTION

4. Estuaries Importance – Food• Estuaries also have economic

importance. These dynamic bodies of water provide us with an important source of FOOD

McFish

4. Estuaries Importance – Tourism

• Estuaries are also a popular tourist destination.

• This means people like to go on vacation in estuaries to boat, swim, bird watch and fish.

• TOURISM = MONEY

4. Estuaries Importance – Flooding

• Estuaries stop flooding• HOW? Wet land can hold more water

than dry land because water sticks to water (cohesion)

5. How do humans hurt estuaries

• Dredging• Draining• Bulldozing• Paving• Polluted runoff from

Rural, Suburban, and Urban Areas

• Dams• Sewage Discharges

Rural = farmlandSuburban =

neighborhoodsUrban = cities

People dredge to grab the sand from the bottom of the estuary to put on other beaches that arerunning out of sand.

6. What are some ways that we can protect estuaries?

• Conserve water• use less fertilizer• stop littering• respect habitats• follow signs that say DON’T WALK and

NO WAKE• keep our beaches clean.

7. TRUE or FALSE. The tides affect estuaries 8. TRUE or FALSE. An estuary has more life

per square inch than the best farmland 9. TRUE or FALSE. There are over 100 estuaries in the U.S. 10. TRUE or FALSE. Between 1973 and

1983 North Carolina lost more estuaries than any other state.

SO WHAT?HOW DOES THIS AFFECT YOU?

REMEMBER, YOU LIVE IN A WATERSHED. WHERE DOES ALL THAT WATEREVENTUALLY GO?