Bay Facts
The Bay is full of interesting facts and trivia related to its history, wildlife, geography and more.
4-30 mile width
The Bay’s width ranges from four miles near Aberdeen, Maryland, to 30 miles near cape Charles, Virginia.
Replacing grass lawn with native plants
Twenty-six percent of watershed residents have replaced an area of their grass lawn with native plants. Native plants provide food and habitat to bees, birds and butterflies, and often don’t need to be watered or fertilized.
Learn more35.5 million years
The formation of the Chesapeake Bay happened 35.5 million years ago when a meteor collided with Earth, forming a massive crater.
Longest free flowing river in the Bay watershed
The 195-mile-long Rappahannock River is the longest free flowing river in the Chesapeake Bay watershed.
12 major rivers
Major rivers emptying into the Bay include the James, York, Rappahannock, Potomac, Patuxent, Patapsco and Susquehanna from the west and the Pocomoke, Wicomico, Nanticoke, Choptank and Chester from the east.
Majority of striped bass spawn in the Bay
Seventy to ninety percent of all striped bass, known locally as rockfish, were spawned in the Bay.
Learn more174 feet deep
The deepest part of the Bay, located southeast of Annapolis near Bloody Point, is called “The Hole” and is 174 feet deep.
51 billion gallons
Approximately 51 billion gallons of water flow into the Bay each day from its freshwater tributaries.
Learn moreLongest river fully within Maryland
The 110-mile-long Patuxent River is the longest river to flow exclusively within the borders of Maryland.
18 trillion gallons
The Chesapeake Bay holds more than 18 trillion gallons of water.
Largest estuary in the United States
The Chesapeake Bay is an estuary: a body of water where fresh and salt water mix. It is the largest of more than 100 estuaries in the United States and third largest in the world.
Learn moreThe Powhatan tribes
There were many different tribes in the region before Europeans arrived, but the dominant group were Algonquian speakers known collectively as the Powhatan tribes.
84 degrees Fahrenheit
Water temperatures in the Bay fluctuate widely throughout the year, reaching as high as 84 degrees in summer.
Saltiest part of the Bay
Salinity is highest at the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay, where water from the Atlantic Ocean enters.
Remnants of an ancient river
A few deep troughs run along much of the Bay’s length and are believed to be remnants of the ancient Susquehanna River.
18.5 million people
The Chesapeake Bay watershed is home to more than 18 and a half million people. Ten million of them live along or near the Bay’s shores. About 150,000 new people move into the Bay watershed each year.
Learn moreBald eagle recovery in the Chesapeake
In the 1970’s, there were as few as 60 breeding pairs of bald eagles in the entire Bay region. Today, as much as 3,000 breeding pairs of bald eagles can be found.
Learn more64,000 square miles
The area of the watershed is about 64,000 square miles.
87 species of waterbirds
During the winter, the Bay supports 87 species of waterbirds. Of these wintering waterbirds, 14 species rely on the Bay to serve as habitat for more than 10% of their continental populations.
200 invasive species
There are as many as 200 invasive species present in the Chesapeake Bay watershed that are causing some serious issues in an already-stressed ecosystem. Some examples include blue catfish, snakehead, zebra mussel, purple loosestrife, and nutria.
29 species of waterfowl
The Chesapeake region is home to at least 29 species of waterfowl.
Learn moreWhere does the Bay get its water?
The Bay receives about half its water volume from the Atlantic Ocean in the form of saltwater. The other half (freshwater) drains into the Bay from the enormous 64,000-square-mile watershed.
Meaning of "Chesepiooc"
The word Chesepiooc is an Algonquian word referring to a village "at a big river." In 2005, Algonquian historian Blair Rudes helped dispel the widely-held belief that the name meant “great shellfish bay.”
One million waterfowl
Nearly one million waterfowl winter on the Bay–approximately one-third of the Atlantic coast’s migratory population. The birds stop to feed and rest on the Bay during their annual migration along the Atlantic Migratory Bird Flyway.
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