Chesapeake Bay Ecology
Biology – Mr. Bennett
Name: __________________________________
Date: ___________________ Period: _______
Directions: go to the websites listed and follow the directions to answer the questions
http://tinyurl.com/dhs-baymap
Look at the map and answer the following questions.
1. From North to South how long is the Chesapeake Bay watershed?
2. What states are included in the Chesapeake Bay watershed?
http://tinyurl.com/dhs-bayreport
Scroll down and look at the bay report card.
1. What are the most important problems facing the Chesapeake Bay? On what
measures on the report card does the Bay score an “F”?
http://tinyurl.com/dhs-bayFAQ
1. How close do you live to a stream in the Chesapeake Bay watershed?
2. How many different kind of birds live in the Chesapeake Bay watershed?
3. What are invasive species and what is so bad about them?
4. What is a riparian forest buffer?
5. Why are SAV or underwater grasses so important for the bay?
6. What are the major problems facing the Chesapeake Bay?
7. Why are “nutrients” bad for the Bay? (aren’t nutrients a good thing?!?)
8. Where does all of the pollution in the bay come from and how does it get there?
http://tinyurl.com/dhs-bayfish
Click on the dates on the timeline labeled “Fish” and answer the following questions.
1. In 1890, what were the two major fish species caught in the Bay?
2. What was the major fish species caught in the Bay in 1998?
3. When did rockfish become a major fish species caught in the Bay?
4. Which year had the highest diversity of fish?
5. Look at the fish catch for 1990. It is much lower than all of the other years, what
do you think could have contributed to the catch being so low that year?
http://tinyurl.com/dhs-bayalgae
1. Click on the picture of an algae bloom and look at the four (4) photographs of
algae blooms. Describe what they look like.
2. What is the problem of algae growth/blooms linked to?
3. What happens when the algae die?
4. What does the presence of algae blooms tell us about water quality?
http://tinyurl.com/dhs-bayfish1
1. What is an invasive species?
2. Scroll down to Life History and habitat. Where are blue catfish originally from?
3. What is the lifespan of the blue catfish?
4. Blue and flathead catfish are highly productive and create extremely high
numbers of offspring in each reproductive cycle. How many eggs could a 10 lb
catfish produce?
5. Scroll down to “Role in the ecosystem.” Summarize how blue catfish threaten the
Chesapeake Bay ecosystem.
http://tinyurl.com/dhs-bayfish2
Watch this video about the invasive snakehead fish.
Read the following facts about the snakehead fish:
 Mostly found in the Potomac River and the creeks and streams surrounding it
 No natural predators in the Chesapeake Bay ecosystem
 Females can produce almost 100,000 eggs each year
 Prefers to eat fish but will also feed on frogs, crustaceans, and small birds,
mammals or reptiles
What effect do you think the snakehead fish could have on the Chesapeake Bay
ecosystem? Why is it a threat to the Bay?
Based on everything you have learned about ecology, biodiversity, and the
Chesapeake Bay, write 2 paragraphs about what can be done to reduce the threat of
human impact on ecosystems around the world and especially the Chesapeake Bay.
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Discuss the effects of pollution, habitat destruction, invasive species, and
overharvesting and ways that we can try to solve those problems
Think about the effects that human impacts can have on communities, food
webs, and the abiotic factors of ecosystems.
You may use the Internet for information if you would like but do not copy,
word-for-word, information from the web
Write your response directly on this page and/or the back of this page if you
need to