Chesapeake Bay Field Office

10/11/2026

Anytime of year is a great time to visit a National Wildlife Refuge! And October 12-19 is National Wildlife Refuge Week, when many refuges have special activities and events. Find a nearby refuge here: https://ow.ly/yCwr50ZUF50

10/05/2026

Over 380 million birds to migrate tonight! You can help them by turning off any unnecessary outdoor lights.
📷Graphic produced by Cornell Lab/BirdCast

10/02/2026

Freshwater mussels strengthen aquatic ecosystems. Like oysters of the Chesapeake Bay, freshwater mussels filter water for food, removing nutrients and other pollutants from the water. This filtering action improves water quality for fish and other aquatic animals. 📷Sarah McRae USFWS
https://ow.ly/JX8050ZOo1L

09/30/2026

Because they require pristine, stable habitat with high water quality conditions, brook trout are indicators of with high water quality conditions.
📷Ryan Hagerty USFWS
https://ow.ly/SLuk50ZOnLU

09/28/2026

Like capillaries bringing blood and nutrients to vital organs in a body, streams are the lifeblood of a watershed. Streams through the landscape - conduits for water, fish and other aquatic life to move downstream. They also carry sediment, nutrients and pollutants.
https://ow.ly/il0S50ZOnsE
📷Leslie Pitt USFWS

09/25/2026

The Chesapeake Bay, an estuary, provides many different types of habitats, including open water, submerged aquatic vegetation (SAV) beds, marshes, beaches, mud flats and oyster reefs. Thousands of species of wildlife and aquatic life, including fish, crabs, birds and mammals depend on these habitats for their survival.

09/23/2026

09/22/2026

Welcome autumn! The leaf is the food factory for the tree. Chlorophyll in a leaf uses the sun’s energy to convert carbon dioxide and water into sugar. As the days shorten, there is less sunlight to make food. Nutrients and minerals are withdrawn from leaves and transported to the trunk, stems and roots. Chlorophyll breaks down. Leaves reveal their fiery autumn colors as chlorophyll breaks down and other pigments are unmasked.

https://ow.ly/1s9P50WPTlX
📷Forest Wander CC BY-SA 2.0

09/20/2026

An estuary is a partially enclosed body of water where fresh water from rivers and streams mixes with salt water from the ocean. The Chesapeake Bay is the largest of more than 100 estuaries in the U.S.. About half of the Chesapeake Bay’s water comes from the salty Atlantic Ocean. The other half is freshwater draining from its watershed.
📷NOAA

09/14/2026

Discover nature at Masonville Cove Urban Wildlife Conservation Day! Visit Masonville Cove this Saturday for a FREE day of outdoor fun celebrating wildlife and conservation. Enjoy hands-on activities, nature walks, crafts, and more!

Details here: https://ow.ly/HKzG50ZHut8