Water Quality and Estuaries

Review: Watersheds, Estuaries, and Dead Zones

Chesapeake Bay

Watershed

An area of land where all water drains and goes to the same place, usually collecting in a stream or river.

Multiple Choice

Which describes a watershed?

• Where freshwater and saltwater meet

• A single point where water drains to

• An area of low oxygen in water

Multiple Choice

What fundamental force of nature causes water to flow in a watershed?

• Tides

• Gravity

• Wind

• Evaporation

Multiple Choice

Changes in the land define watersheds, especially changes in ________.

• Types of soil

• Atmosphere

• Elevation

• Erosion

Estuaries

Estuaries are formed where fresh water mixes with salt water from the ocean. Abundant, diverse life exists in healthy estuaries and they are known as "nursuries of the sea."

Multiple Choice

Which describes an estuary?

• An area where fresh water and salt water meet

• A single point where water drains to

• An area of low oxygen in water

Multiple Choice

Estuaries are also known as _____________.

• Nurseries of the sea

• Shark hunting grounds

• Dead zones

• Sheltered water

Multiple Select

(Check all that apply) Estuaries are unique because they:

• They connect freshwater and saltwater ecosystems.

• Organisms from many other ecosystems also spend time in estuaries.

• They are protected from the full force of ocean waves, winds and storms by land forms such as barrier islands or peninsulas.

Dead Zones

An area that cannot support life because of its hypoxic state. There is little to no oxygen in the water. Dead zones are caused by too many nutrients in the water which over stimulate algae growth.

Multiple Choice

Which describes a dead zone?

• An area of low oxygen in water

• A single point where water drains to

• Where fresh water and salt water meet

Multiple Select

(Check all that apply) Dead zones are regions in a body of water where:

• The water is brackish because salt water is mixing with fresh water

• Decomposer microbes have multiplied and are using up oxygen

• Nutrients from runoff are promoting floating algae growth

• No plants are able to grow because of a lack of sunlight

Multiple Choice

One of the primary human causes of dead zone formation is:

• Burning of fossil fuels

• Deforestation

• Overfishing

• Farming with fertilizers

Historic Chesapeake Bay (Before Settlers)

• Which organisms are tertiary consumers?

• Is floating algae rare or abundant?

• Are interactions between organisms mostly strong or weak?

• How many organisms are abundant? How many rare?

Multiple Choice

According to the diagram, floating algae are _____.

• Abundant

• Rare

• Extinct

Multiple Choice

Microbes are ______.

• Tertiary Consumers

• Producers

• Decomposers

• Secondary Consumers

Multiple Choice

Which of these Chesapeake Bay organisms stands out by acting as a decomposer, primary consumer, and secondary consumer?

• Jellyfish

• Zooplankton

• Oyster

• Microbe

Modern Chesapeake Bay (After Settlers, Fishing, and Farming)

• What organism was added?

• Is floating algae rare or abundant?

• Are interactions between organisms mostly strong or weak?

• How many organisms are abundant? How many rare?

Multiple Select

(Check all that apply) Select the two reasons why floating algae is flourishing in Chesapeake Bay:

• There are extra nutrients available from fertilizer runoff

• Algae are using excess oxygen from the microbes

• Algae grows on the now-abundant jellyfish

• Human fishing has greatly reduced algae's consumers

Multiple Select

(Check all that apply) Which of these statements accurately describe the Bay's food web after European settlers changed it?

• Many abundant populations became rare, and vice versa.

• The Bay's producers were relatively untouched.

• Many interactions between organisms were removed or weakened.

• While some populations decreased, none went extinct.

Multiple Choice

In general, when a population of organisms decreases, then:

• Their predators’ population decreases and their preys’ population increases (predators down, prey up)

• Their predators’ population increases and their preys’ population decreases (predators up, prey down)

• Their predators’ population increases and their preys’ population increases (predators up, prey up)

• Their predators’ population decreases and their preys’ population decreases (predators down, prey down)

Enduring Skill

• "Students can analyze and interpret scientific data (charts, graphs, data tables, etc)"

• We will assess our progress toward our Enduring Skill next class.

Multiple Choice

Where is the independent variable plotted on a graph?

• Y-axis

• X-axis

Multiple Choice

Where is the dependent variable located on a graph?

• Y-axis

• X-axis