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The Chesapeake Bay watershed spans 64,000 square miles throughout New York, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, West Virginia, and Washinton, D.C. To put that into perspective, that’s more than 14 times the size of the Chesapeake Bay itself. This expansive, diverse land is home to more than 18 million people and over 3,000 plant and animal species. There’s a wide range of landscapes and even more life to explore throughout the watershed, so we’re glad you’re here.
BIRD SPECIES
FISH SPECIES
INSECT SPECIES
MAMMAL SPECIES
REPTILE SPECIES
AMPHIBIAN SPECIES
ALGAE SPECIES
INVERTEBRATES
“Animals Upstream” is an engaging four-part video series that unveils the often-overlooked wonders within the Chesapeake Bay watershed. When one thinks of the Chesapeake Bay, images of rockfish, oysters, and blue crabs likely come to mind. While these are iconic to the region, the watershed extends across 64,000 square miles and provides a home to more than 3,600 species of plants and animals.
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Pollinator Week is June 21-27, 2021, and the Alliance is celebrating by giving away some of our brand new “bee kind” pollinator stickers! All you need to do to be eligible is upload your favorite pollinator photo at the form below. The contest will close at 11:59 PM on June 27th. Please only submit photos …
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Periodical cicadas, unlike the annual cicadas we hear and see each summer, take part in a synchronous emergence that only occurs once every 13 or 17 years.
What is it that draws us to the spring woods? Is it the cacophony of spring peepers, the blanket of vibrant green leaves engulfing the forest around us, or maybe the prospect of a delicious morel just around the next bend? I’m not one to turn down a morel, and the sights and sounds of spring are wonderful, but as the ice begins to melt and the days get longer, my mind turns to Pennsylvania’s beautiful creeks and the trout that call them home.
In January of 2021 the Alliance coordinated the installation of a wetland habitat enhancement project in Charles County, Maryland. Through a series of four vernal pools the project has created habitat for various amphibians and reptiles in the surrounding area.
“I now have a bat house, a duck house, and essentially an oyster house.” -My dad, after we finished putting the oysters in off our dock. After about 20 years of living on the Eastern Shore, my dad has grown a fondness for the wildlife in the area. In October I wrote an article titled, …
It’s alive! The forest floor, that is. When walking through the woods we mostly see leaves, sticks, and other dead plant material on the ground. That layer of “duff” is teeming with life though, and that’s a very good thing. The tiny organisms of our forest floor are members of the ecosystem that are just …
Bats are typically associated with caves, attics, and Halloween, not trees. However, all 15 of the bat species within the Chesapeake Bay Watershed use forest habitat for breeding, foraging, and/or shelter. They are a critical part of forest ecosystems, each daily consuming nearly their own body weight in insects and filling a similar ecological niche …
