Estuaries

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Estuaries
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What is an estuary, you may ask?
Video all about estuaries ? http//www.untamedscie
nce.com/biology/world-biomes/estuaries-biome
An estuary is the area where a river and an ocean
meet.
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.
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Weather
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The rainfall for an estuary varies on where it is
located. Rainfall

• Rainfall for the southeast estuaries are
  seasonal often with very dry summers

The estuaries of the southwest have very high
rainfall
Rainfall
The estuaries of the north coast are classified
by seasonal rainfall

• Most east coast estuaries are subject to low
  rainfall

Bass Straight Estuaries in the north coast have
seasonal rainfall rainfalls are seasonal.
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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.
TEMPERATURE
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 mid-latitude where
surface temperatures are at a minimum in winter
and a maximum in late summer.
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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.
Winds
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Geology
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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.
Soil
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Like most other factors, depending on where the
estuary is located, determines the type of
terrain it will contain.
Terrain
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.
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Plants
Douglas Aster
Pickleweed
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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
The plants that live in estuaries are naturally
able to adapt to the conditions that they are
provided with.
Tufted Hairgrass
Gumweed
The ranging temperatures leave the plants in a
variety of positions. They live in freezing and
very warm temperatures.
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Animals
Harbor Seal
River Otter
Greater Yellowlegs
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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.
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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.
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Works Cited
http//www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/exhibits/biomes/marin
e.php http//depts.washington.edu/natmap/water/est
uary_animals.html http//www.gma.org/katahdin/estu
ary.html http//soer.justice.tas.gov.au/2009/indic
ator/39/index.php http//www.nhptv.org/natureworks
/nwep6a.htm http//core.ecu.edu/geology/woods/estu
ariesI.htm http//www.waterencyclopedia.com/En-Ge/
Estuaries.html http//images.google.com/images?rlz
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.jpg http//www.dep.state.fl.us/coastal/habitats/e
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9RT7fnE0PQqSDWm9whI5O2Vkh380w950sz67hlen
start1um1itbs1tbnid8iNpg5A70S7btMtbnh59
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26hl3Den26safe3Dactive26rlz3D1T4RNTN_enUS359
US37526tbs3Disch1 http//www.niot.res.in/m5/mbi
c/me/zones/images/estuary_clip_image001.jpg http/
/www.thefreelibrary.com/Parasiticandsymbioticfa
unainoysters(Crassostreavirginica)...-a0130777
669 http//www.bing.com/images/search?qgeologyFO
RMBIFD http//www.bing.com/images/search?qestua
ry27goformQBIRqsnsksc8-8focal77ffb4f1
044ed2484700c7f67dd01776furlhttp3A2F2Fwww.co.
snohomish.wa.us2Fdocuments2FDepartments2FParks
2Fmaps2Festuary_map.jpg