Chesapeake Bay Program

06/01/2026

Remind yourself of these 5 tips before you head out onto the Bay this summer. 🚤

How to boat responsibly on the Bay this summer.

05/29/2026

These six species travel many miles to visit their home away from home in the Chesapeake Bay!

✅ Osprey
✅ Black Duck
✅ Lion’s Mane jellyfish
✅ Eastern red bat
✅ Monarch butterfly
✅ American eel

These six species travel great distances to visit the Chesapeake Bay watershed

05/28/2026

Clean water is important—and so is being able to access it! New York is continuing to provide more opportunities for members of the public to access the water.

Between 2011 and 2024, New York opened 40 new sites to connect the public with the water. Overall, there are now 1,451 public access sites across the Chesapeake Bay watershed.

Read the latest Bay Barometer to learn more about progress towards conservation and restoration goals: https://ow.ly/stVs50YpGRR

Photo by Will Parson/Chesapeake Bay Program

05/26/2026

The Chesapeake region is filled with "specialist" bees, butterflies, moths, and hummingbirds who are perfectly matched for just one kind of native plant.

For example, the ruby-throated hummingbird's long beak and head shape is perfectly adapted for accessing the nectar in the tube-shaped petals of a Cardinal flower. Meanwhile, monarch butterfly caterpillars almost exclusively eat milkweed, even though it is toxic to other animals.

You can help these native pollinators by planting more of their host plants in your yard.

Learn more about the specialist pollinators that call the Bay region home

05/24/2026

One of the largest native flowers in North America, the American lotus can be easily recognized by its buttery-yellow flowers and wavy leaves.

The plant's distinctive cone-shaped seed pods (which look almost like a shower head) are eaten by waterfowl, while the leaves are eaten by muskrats and beavers.

The American lotus is a rare find at Chesapeake Bay wetlands, but can be found every summer at the Kenilworth Park & Aquatic Gardens in Washington, D.C.



(Photo courtesy of Denver Kramer/iNaturalist CC BY-NC, cropped)

05/23/2026

From afar, wetlands might look pretty uniform. But if you take a closer look, you can find a mix of native plants with different wildlife benefits.

Cattails, jewelweed, and American lotus are among just a few plants you can find in wetlands. Next time you're near one of the Bay's wetlands, see if you can find these unique species.

Wetlands across the Chesapeake region are filled with interesting plants and wildlife

05/22/2026

Once on the brink of extinction, bald eagles have made a remarkable comeback in Virginia thanks to decades of conservation and habitat protection. 🦅

As America approaches its 250th birthday, wildlife experts say the nation’s symbol stands as both a conservation success story and a reminder that threats to wildlife still remain. 🇺🇸

Wildlife experts say the nation’s symbol has rebounded dramatically, but human-related threats remain a challenge.

05/21/2026

Wetlands are superheroes of the Chesapeake Bay watershed! Wetlands filter polluted runoff, store flood waters, protect shorelines and provide critical habitat for hundreds of species. They even offer great spots for fishing and birdwatching!

Since 2014, New York has enhanced the ecological function of 295 acres of wetlands, contributing to the watershed-wide total of 61,163 acres. Additionally, New York has created or restored 92 acres of wetlands, contributing to the watershed-wide total of 4,862 acres.

Read the latest Bay Barometer to learn more about progress towards conservation and restoration goals: https://ow.ly/cLoM50YpGRe

Photo by Will Parson/Chesapeake Bay Program

05/20/2026

The Chesapeake Bay's blue crab population increased 46% this year, recovering from record low population numbers in 2025.

A survey from Maryland DNR estimates the overall population at 349 million crabs. Two-thirds of that total, about 228 million, were juvenile crabs, a 121% increase over last year’s tally.

Scientists say the population is still far below historic averages, with one of the lowest estimates of juvenile blue crabs.

The Chesapeake Bay’s blue crabs have clawed their way out of the cellar.

05/19/2026

The Chesapeake Bay's dead zone is expected to be relatively mild this summer, with hypoxic levels 31% below the long term average.

Dead zones, or hypoxia, form when nutrient runoff fuels algae blooms that suck oxygen out of the water when they die-off. Blue crabs, oysters, fish and other marine life struggle to survive in dead zones, especially when paired with warmer water.

This year's forecast estimates that because of below average rainfall and nutrient runoff, the dead zone should be less severe than normal.

Below-average nutrient runoff is predicted to result in better conditions for Bay marine life