Estuaries
What is an estuary, you may ask?
An estuary is the area where a
river and an ocean meet.
Video all about estuaries 
http://www.untamedscience.com/biology/w
orld-biomes/estuaries-biome
Estuaries can be found all
over the world, but are
constantly changing.
In an estuary the water is a mixture of salt
water, that is different than the ocean,
and freshwater, that is different from the
river, which makes the estuary very
unique.
Weather
The rainfall for an estuary
varies on where it is located.
Rainfall
The estuaries of the
southwest have very
high rainfall
Most east coast
estuaries are subject
to low rainfall
Rainfall for the southeast
estuaries are seasonal
often with very dry
summers
The estuaries of the
north coast are
classified by
seasonal rainfall
Bass Straight Estuaries in the
north coast have seasonal
rainfall rainfalls are seasonal.
The temperature of an estuary
greatly varies because of how
shallow it is.
Temperatures for an estuary
can vary on a yearly basis,
or even a daily basis.
Some estuaries at high
temperatures can even
have ice on the surface.
Both prevailing winds and tidal
currents can greatly affect the
surface temperature of an
estuary.
Seasonal changes can most easily be
detected in the coastal regions in the midlatitude where surface temperatures are at a
minimum in winter and a maximum in late
summer.
The winds of an estuary depends on
where it is located. But no matter
where the estuary is located, wind
plays an important role.
Persistent winds can move large
volumes of water to one side of the
estuary and raise the water level
along the downwind shoreline.
Gravity soon sets in and the water
begins to flow in the opposite
direction along the bottom. Similarly,
the water level along the upwind
shoreline may fall as the wind blows
the water off shore.
Strong winds that blow across
estuaries can cause nontidal
circulation. In simpler terms the friction
between the wind and the water
creates extra movement.
Geology
The soil type of an estuary
is very rich and full of
nutrients.
You are probably wondering what
makes the soil so rich and full of
nutrients? Well there are many
animals and plants that die and
decay which cause the high amount
of nutrients in the soil.
Because of the nutrients in
the soil, a large variety of
plants are able to live in
estuaries.
Like most other factors, depending on
where the estuary is located, determines
the type of terrain it will contain.
Estuarine habitat types include sandy substrate, rocky
shores and reefs, soft-sediment bottoms, cobbled
areas, seagrass beds, salt marshes, intertidal mudflats,
and other vegetated wetland areas.
Douglas Aster
Pickleweed
Red Algae
To be able to live in an estuary, plants
have to make special adaptations.
The ebb and flow of tides may leave
some plants high and dry, so they
have to be able to accommodate
Tufted Hairgrass
The plants that live in estuaries
are naturally able to adapt to the
conditions that they are provided
with.
Gumweed
The ranging temperatures leave
the plants in a variety of positions.
They live in freezing and very warm
temperatures.
Harbor Seal
Animals
River Otter
Greater Yellowlegs
Animals that live in estuaries have to learn to
adapt to the range in temperatures and the
unique salt and fresh water levels.
Hermit Crab
The shallow water, salt marshes,
seagrasses, and mangrove roots
provide excellent hiding places
from larger, open-water predators.
Some species grow in estuaries
for a short time; others remain
there for life.
Chum Salmon
Many fishes and crustaceans migrate offshore to spawn or breed.
The eggs develop into larvae (immature forms) that are transported
into estuaries by tides and currents.
Since an estuary habitat is mostly water, a
majority of the animals found there have
gills, or are able to survive in and around
the water.
The oysters that live in estuaries serve
as a shelter for parasites and other
bacteria that live there too.
Works Cited
http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/exhibits/biomes/marine.php
http://depts.washington.edu/natmap/water/estuary_animals.html
http://www.gma.org/katahdin/estuary.html
http://soer.justice.tas.gov.au/2009/indicator/39/index.php
http://www.nhptv.org/natureworks/nwep6a.htm
http://core.ecu.edu/geology/woods/estuariesI.htm
http://www.waterencyclopedia.com/En-Ge/Estuaries.html
http://images.google.com/images?rlz=1T4RNWN_enUS301US304&q=estuary%20worm&safe=active&um=1&ie=UTF8&source=og&sa=N&hl=en&tab=wi
http://images.google.com/images?um=1&hl=en&safe=active&rlz=1T4RNWN_enUS301US304&tbs=isch%3A1&ei=LurZS8_YDY7M7ankVI&sa=X&oi=spell&resnum=0&ct=result&cd=1&q=pickleweed&spell=1&start=0
http://www.lizasreef.com/hope%20for%20the%20oceans/Images%20HFTO/estuaries.jpg
http://www.dep.state.fl.us/coastal/habitats/estuaries.htm
http://images.google.com/images?rlz=1T4RNTN_enUS359US375&q=river%20otter&safe=active&um=1&ie=UTF8&source=og&sa=N&hl=en&tab=wi
http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.grayling-on-a-fly.com/images/chum-salmon.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.graylingon-afly.com/fishing.html&usg=__KFV9RT7fnE0PQqSDWm9whI5O2Vk=&h=380&w=950&sz=67&hl=en&start=1&um=1&itbs=1&tbnid=8iN
pg5A70S7btM:&tbnh=59&tbnw=148&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dchum%2Bsalmon%26um%3D1%26hl%3Den%26safe%3Dactive%26rl
z%3D1T4RNTN_enUS359US375%26tbs%3Disch:1
http://www.niot.res.in/m5/mbic/me/zones/images/estuary_clip_image001.jpg
http://www.thefreelibrary.com/Parasitic+and+symbiotic+fauna+in+oysters+(Crassostrea+virginica)...-a0130777669
http://www.bing.com/images/search?q=geology&FORM=BIFD#
http://www.bing.com/images/search?q=estuary%27&go=&form=QBIR&qs=n&sk=&sc=88#focal=77ffb4f1044ed2484700c7f67dd01776&furl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.co.snohomish.wa.us%2Fdocuments%2FDepartments%2
FParks%2Fmaps%2Festuary_map.jpg