Benthic Resources Of The Chesapeake Bay Estuarine System

Diaz, Robert J.

Item

Benthic Resources Of The Chesapeake Bay Estuarine System

Diaz, Robert J.

Abstract

The term benthic is derived from the Greek root " benth" which means the depths of the sea. Benthic has then come to mean that which is associated with the bottom of any body of water from lakes to oceans, and encompasses a broad range of organisms from algae to fish. In the Chesapeake Bay there is a wide variety and combination of benthic environments ranging from intertidal flats of sand or mud, shallow seagrass meadows, subtidal bottoms, and deeper channels. These environment take on a unique biological and chemical character, depending upon where they occur along the gradient of Bay salinities and sediment type.