Open & Shallow Waters
An area of incredible biological activity, the Bay's shallow waters extend from the shore to about 10 feet deep. Beyond the shoreline lie the Bay's open waters, with channels more than 100 feet deep.
-
Alexandrium monilatum
Alexandrium monilatumAlexandrium monilatum is a bioluminescent algae species common in harmful algal blooms in the Atlantic Ocean and Chesapeake Bay.
-
American Coot
Fulica americanaThe American coot is a dark, duck-like bird with a white bill. It visits the Chesapeake Bay and its rivers, creeks and wetlands from autumn through spring.
-
American mink
Neovison visonThe American mink is a semiaquatic mammal inhabiting most of North America. This animal is a key predator of small mammals, fish, amphibians and insects.
-
Arks
Family: ArcidaeArks are boxy bivalves with thick, white, ribbed shells. They live in the salty waters of the lower Chesapeake Bay.
-
Atlantic Croaker
Micropogonias undulatusThe Atlantic croaker is a silvery-pink fish that makes a loud “croaking” sound. It visits the Chesapeake Bay from spring through autumn.
-
Atlantic Menhaden
Brevoortia tyrannusAtlantic menhaden is a silvery-blue herring with dark spots on the sides. Large schools of menhaden visit the Chesapeake Bay from spring through autumn.
-
Atlantic Oyster Drill
Urosalpinx cinereaThe Atlantic oyster drill is a small, predatory snail with a pointed, ribbed shell. It lives on reefs, rocks and pilings throughout the middle and lower Chesapeake Bay.
-
Atlantic Silverside
Menidia menidiaThe Atlantic silverside is a small forage fish with a silver band along either side of its body. It can be found in schools in the Bay, and is an important part of many larger fishes’ diets.
-
Barn Swallow
Hirundo rusticaThe barn swallow is a small, agile bird that visits open waters, wetlands and farm fields throughout the Chesapeake Bay region from spring through autumn.
-
Bay Anchovy
Anchoa mitchilliThe bay anchovy is a small, translucent fish that lives in schools throughout the Chesapeake Bay. It is the most abundant fish in the Bay.
-
Bay Scallop
Argopecten irradiansThe bay scallop is a bivalve that lives in the lower Chesapeake Bay’s salty, shallow waters. Its ribbed, multicolored shells are often found on beaches throughout the lower Bay.
-
Black Sea Bass
Centropristis striataThe black sea bass is a striking, bluish-black fish that visits the lower Chesapeake Bay from spring through autumn.
-
Blennies
Suborder: BlennioideiBlennies are small, brightly colored fish that live in the Chesapeake Bay year-round, mostly among oyster reefs.
-
Blue Crab
Callinectes sapidusThe blue crab is a swimming crustacean with bright blue claws and an olive green shell. It is one of the most recognizable species in the Chesapeake Bay.
-
Blueback Herring
Alosa aestivalisThe blueback herring is a small, silvery fish that migrate from the brackish waters of the Chesapeake Bay to the open ocean.
-
Bristle Worms
Class: PolychaetaBristle worms are soft, segmented worms found along shorelines, mud flats and shallow waters throughout the Chesapeake Bay and its rivers.
-
Bufflehead
Bucephala albeolaThe bufflehead is a small, chunky, energetic diving duck that visits the open waters of the Chesapeake Bay and its rivers from autumn through spring.
-
Canada Goose
Branta canadensisThe Canada goose is a large, plump bird with a brownish back and a long, black neck. It is a common visitor to the Chesapeake Bay region from autumn through spring. Many Canada geese also live in the Bay watershed year-round.
-
Canvasback
Aythya valisineriaThe canvasback is a large diving duck with a distinctive long, sloping facial profile. It visits the Chesapeake Bay and its tidal rivers from autumn through spring.
-
Cobia
Rachycentron canadumCobia are large, long fish with a dark stripe running along the sides of the body. They visit the lower Chesapeake Bay’s open waters from spring through autumn.
-
Common Goldeneye
Bucephala clangulaThe common goldeneye is an active diving duck that can be identified by its golden yellow eyes and white, rounded face patches. It visits the open waters of the Chesapeake Bay and its rivers from late autumn through spring.
-
Common Loon
Gavia immerThe common loon is a duck-like sea bird with a thick, pointed bill and a distinctive black-and-white checkered pattern during breeding season. It visits the Chesapeake Bay in autumn and late winter to feed on open waters.
-
Common Sea Star
Asterias forbesiThe common sea star is a spiny-skinned echinoderm with five pointed arms. It lives mainly on rocks, jetties and pilings in the shallow, salty waters of the lower Chesapeake Bay.
-
Common snapping turtle
Chelydra serpentinaThe common snapping turtle is the largest freshwater turtle in the Chesapeake Bay watershed. It lives in both freshwater and brackish water environments.
-
Common Spider Crab
Libinia emarginataAlso known as the portly spider crab or the nine-spined spider crab, the common spider crab is a long-legged and slow-moving crustacean that covers itself in algae and small debris as a defense against predators.
-
Double-crested Cormorant
Phalacrocorax auritusThe double-crested cormorant is a large, black water bird with a long, hooked bill. It lives year-round on the Chesapeake Bay’s shallow and open waters.
-
Flatworms
Order: PolycladidaFlatworms are tiny, leaf-shaped worms that live among reefs, jetties and eelgrass meadows in the shallows of the middle and lower Chesapeake Bay.
-
Gobies
Family: GobiidaeGobies are small, secretive fish that live in the Chesapeake Bay year-round, mostly among oyster reefs.
-
Gould’s Shipworm
Bankia gouldiGould’s shipworm is a bivalve with a long, worm-like body. It lives within untreated wood, such as pilings and driftwood, in the middle and lower Chesapeake Bay.
-
Greater Scaup
Aythya marilaThe greater scaup visits the east coast of the Chesapeake region during the winter. Females are brown with a white patch on their face, and males are white with a dark rump and head.
-
Hard Clam
Mercenaria mercenariaThe hard clam is a bivalve with thick, ridged, rounded shells. It lives in the salty waters of the lower Chesapeake Bay.
-
Hermit Crabs
Pagurus spp.Hermit crabs are small crustaceans that lack a shell and must “borrow” one from another animal. They live on beaches, mud flats and shallow waters throughout the lower Chesapeake Bay.
-
Hogchoker
Trinectes maculatusThe unusually-named hogchoker is a small, flat fish with a brown, rounded body. It is abundant year-round throughout the Chesapeake Bay.
-
Hooded Merganser
Lophodytes cucullatusThe hooded merganser is a diving duck with a distinctive fan-like hood on the back of the head. It lives on freshwater lakes, wooded wetlands and tidal shallows throughout the Chesapeake Bay watershed from autumn through spring.
-
Horseshoe Crab
Limulus polyphemusThe horseshoe crab is a primitive-looking arthropod with a hard, brownish-green exoskeleton and a spike-like tail. It visits the Chesapeake Bay’s sandy beaches each spring and summer to spawn.
-
Humpback Whale
Megaptera novaeangliaeThe humpback whale is a school bus-sized mammal that occasionally visits the Chesapeake Bay. It is known for its knobbed head and acrobatic breaching displays.
-
Jellyfish
Order: SemaeostomeaeJellyfish are floating animals with gelatinous, umbrella-shaped bells and stinging tentacles.
-
Kemp’s Ridley Sea Turtle
Lepidochelys kempiiKemp’s ridley is a critically endangered sea turtle with creamy skin and grey/olive limbs. It feeds on blue crabs in the Chesapeake Bay in the summer.
-
Knobbed Whelk
Busycon caricaKnobbed whelks are marine gastropods that live in tidal estuaries along the Atlantic coast. Their spiral shells can range in color from grayish white to tan.
-
Laughing Gull
Leucophaeus atricillaLaughing gulls are medium-sized gulls with white underparts and a gray back. They visit the Chesapeake Bay in the summer to breed.
-
Lumpfish
Cyclopterus lumpusLumpfish are saltwater fish, generally living in the North Atlantic but occasionally coming as far south as the Chesapeake Bay. They have a skin-covered fin that gives them a high crest on their backs, and they have three rows of bony protrusions on their sides.
-
Macoma Clams
Macoma spp.Macoma clams are tiny bivalves with thin, chalky white shells. They live buried in the sand or mud in the shallow waters of the middle and lower Chesapeake Bay.
-
Mallard
Anas platyrhynchosThe mallard is an extremely common dabbling duck that is easily identified by its iridescent green head and white neck ring. It lives year-round on shallow waters such as lakes, rivers and marshes throughout the Chesapeake Bay watershed.
-
Mantis Shrimp
Squilla empusaThe mantis shrimp is a crustacean with a flattened, segmented body and praying mantis-like claws. It burrows within muddy flats along the shoreline of the middle and lower Chesapeake Bay.
-
Mute Swan
Cygnus olorThe mute swan is a large, white bird that lives on shallow waters throughout the Chesapeake Bay region. It is an invasive species.
-
Northern Pintail
Anas acutaThe northern pintail is a dabbling duck with long, pointed tail feathers. It visits fresh and brackish tidalmarshes and rivers throughout the Chesapeake Bay region from autumn through spring.
-
Oyster Toadfish
Opsanus tauThe oyster toadfish is an ugly fish that lives year-round in oyster reefs and other shallow parts of the Chesapeake Bay.
-
Red Drum
Sciaenops ocellatusThe red drum is a large, reddish fish with at least one black spot at the base of the tail. It visits the lower Chesapeake Bay from spring through autumn.
-
River Otter
Lontra canadensisThe river otter is a large, brown, weasel-like mammal found along the shores of the Chesapeake Bay and lakes, streams, rivers and marshes throughout the Bay watershed.
-
Royal Tern
Thalasseus maximusThe royal tern is a large seabird with a thick orange bill that can be found along Chesapeake coastal beaches during its breeding season.
-
Ruddy Duck
Oxyura jamaicensisThe ruddy duck is a small, chubby diving duck that visits the Chesapeake Bay and its rivers, marshes and freshwater lakes from autumn through spring.
-
Skeleton Shrimp
Caprella spp.Skeleton shrimp are tiny, gangly amphipods with transparent, stick-like bodies. They live attached to hydroids, sponges and vegetation in the middle and lower Chesapeake Bay.
-
Skilletfish
Gobiesox strumosusThe skilletfish is a small, frying pan-shaped fish often found clinging to oyster shells in the middle and lower Chesapeake Bay.
-
Soft Shell Clam
Mya arenariaThe soft shell clam is a bivalve with thin, elongated shells. It lives buried in soft sediments in the middle Chesapeake Bay.
-
Spot
Leiostomus xanthurusSpot are small, feisty fish with a distinctive large, black spot near the gill opening. They are common from spring through autumn in the shallow waters of the middle and lower Chesapeake Bay.
-
Spotted Seatrout
Cynoscion nebulosusThe spotted seatrout is a sleek, silvery fish with black, round spots scattered across the back. It visits the Chesapeake Bay from spring through autumn.
-
Striped Bass
Morone saxatilisAlso known as the rockfish or striper, the striped bass is a large predatory fish with dark stripes running along its metallic sides. Part of the Atlantic Coast population lives in the Chesapeake Bay and its tributaries year round.
-
Striped Killifish
Fundulus majalisThe striped killifish is a silvery, minnow-like fish that lives in the tidal creeks and sand flats of the Chesapeake Bay region.
-
Summer Flounder
Paralichthys dentatusThe summer flounder is a flat, brownish fish with large spots on the top side of the body. It visits the middle and lower Chesapeake Bay from spring through autumn.
-
Walleye
Sander vitreusWalleyes are nocturnal top predators that feed on other fish. They are the largest member of the perch family and are not native to the Chesapeake Bay.
-
Winter Flounder
Pleuronectes americanusAlso known as the black back, the winter flounder is a sizeable flatfish whose small head and mouth are located on the right side of its body. Well-adapted to living on the bottom of the Chesapeake Bay, the winter flounder is a common find and popular catch during colder months.