An Estuary:
Where Fresh Water  Meets the Sea

 

Raritan Bay & Sandy Hook Bay are technically not bays – they are part of a big estuary. The name of the estuary is the Hudson-Raritan Estuary or the New York-New Jersey Harbor Estuary. 

No matter what the term, however, our local estuarine waters  are part of a a unique place that  helps to maintain biodiversity by providing a diverse range of  habitats that are critical for the survival of many species, and provide to us numerous resources for recreation, scientific knowledge, education, industry, aesthetic value, boating, fishing, swimming, surfing, and bird watching .

(The vast saltwater wetlands of Conaskonck Point in Union Beach)

In most coastal communities, the local "estuary" is called by another name: a bay, a sound, a harbor, a bayou, or an inlet -- all of these areas are estuaries.

The word estuary is derived from the Latin word aestus, meaning tide, and the adjective aestuarium, meaning tidal. Most people would recognize an estuary as the region where a river meets the sea.

  (Soft-shell clams with their feeding tubes extending out)

An estuary is a partially enclosed body of water (like a bay or river mouth), where saltwater from the ocean mixes with fresh water from creeks, streams, or rivers. This mixing of fresh and salt waters create a unique environment that brims with life of all kinds -- a transition zone between the land and sea known as an estuary.

(An adult Hermit Crab found at a local mudflat)

The estuary gathers and holds an abundance of life-giving nutrients from the land and from the ocean, forming an ecosystem that contains more life per square inch than the richest Midwest farmland.

  (A young Atlantic Lookdown fish, which is more common in warmer waters, but might be found late summer in local bay waters. The fish was caught in a seine net and released alive soon after this picture was taken)

The mixing of salt and fresh waters due to daily tidal action (two high tides and two low tides) creates vast plankton populations that support countless species of fish, birds, invertebrates, marine mammals, and many other critters. The mixture of seawater and freshwater in estuaries is called brackish water and its salinity can range from 0.5 to 35 ppt.

  (A large flock of Greater Scaup in Sandy Hook Bay during the winter)

A plethora of organisms can be found in estuaries, organisms specially adapted to the "brackish" estuarine waters. Estuaries provide calm, protected waters and wetlands for plants and animals to feed, grow, and enjoy. They are nurseries for newborn fish, birds, and sea mammals, and provide resting places for millions of migratory birds.

  (A Snowy Egret seeking a meal in local wetland waters)

Estuaries are homes to all kind of terrestrial or land-based plants and animals. More than two thirds of the fish and shellfish we eat spend all or some part of their live cycle in estuaries. This ecosystem also provides many other important ecological functions, such as acting as filters for terrestrial pollutants and providing protection from flooding.

  (A small Blackfish or Tautog caught in a seine net within local bay waters during the summer, the fish was released alive soon after this picture)

Estuaries are important to our quality of life - they create jobs for healthy economies, and numerous recreational opportunities. The local bay often serves as the focal point for community life and traditions, hosting everything from festivals to busy marinas. They also protect water quality, are a center for research and education, and help reduce the erosion of our shoreline communities.

Long considered to be a wasteland, our estuary has had its sediments dredged, marshes and tidal flats filled, water polluted, and shorelines reconstructed to accommodate housing, transportation, commerce, industry, and agricultural needs.

  (A female Diamondback Terrapin turtle laying eggs in the Bayshore region)

As our population grows in the Bayshore and the demands imposed on land, water, and air increase, so too does the importance of protecting our estuary for its natural and aesthetic values.

Every estuary is unique. Estuaries come in all shapes and sizes, each is unique to their location and climate. Where there are estuaries, there is unique beauty.  

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