Pamlico sound estuary

Compiled by Kella Randolph

PAMLICO SOUND ESTUARY

• Location• Importance

• Plant life• Animal life

• Rivers, streams and other waterways• Threats to the Pamlico Sound Estuary

PAMLICO SOUND ESTUARY

• The Sounds are also part of a larger system. The Albemarle-Pamlico system includes the sounds, the rivers and creeks which flow into the Sounds, and the land surrounding these rivers and creeks. This entire area is called the Albemarle-Pamlico watershed. The watershed includes thirty-six counties in North Carolina and sixteen counties in Virginia. Water in the watershed will eventually drain into the Sounds. This water can carry harmful things, such as improperly treated sewage, oil, fertilizer, and pesticides, from distant places into the estuary.

• https://www.fws.gov/nc-es/edout/albewhatwrong.html

• They are an estuary, a shallow place where salty water from the ocean mixes with fresh water from rivers. The Albemarle-Pamlico estuary is the second largest estuary in the Eastern United States. The largest estuary is Chesapeake Bay. Like all estuaries, it is rich with plant and animal life. The estuary is home to young fish, oysters, crabs, and clams. Ninety-two percent of the fish landed in North Carolina depend on the estuary as a nursery habitat. When you visit the Sounds, see how alive the marshy places are with plants, fish, and birds.

WHAT ARE THE ALBEMARLE AND PAMLICO SOUNDS?

• The Albemarle and Pamlico Sounds cover 2900 square miles of surface water. Approximately 30,880 square miles of land drain into the rivers which feed the Sounds.

• Ten major rivers and creeks too numerous to count are tributaries of the Sounds.

• Approximately 2,670,000 people live in the Albemarle-Pamlico watershed. By the year 2000, an estimated three million people will live there.

• The deepest hole in the estuary is in Pamlico Sound with a depth of 26 feet.

HOW BIG IS THE PAMLICO ESTUARY?

• The Albemarle-Pamlico Sound is located in North Carolina and is the second largest estuary in the United States. The region's watershed is approximately 30,000 square miles. The Albemarle-Pamlico Sound encompasses over 9,000 miles of freshwater rivers and streams and over 1.5 million acres of brackish, estuarine waters. The Chowan, Roanoke, Pasquotank, Tar-Pamlico, and Neuse are five major river basins that flow into the Sounds. There are seven sounds that make up the estuarine system. They are the Albemarle, Currituck, Croatan, Pamlico, Bogue, Core and Roanoke.

• (Courtesy of Creative Commons)http://www.marine.unc.edu/Paerllab andhttp://www.marine.unc.edu/Neuse/modmon

ALBEMARLE-PAMLICO SOUND

• The Albemarle-Pamlico Sound supports a variety of habitats including wetlands, rivers, and creeks. In these habitats, there lives a diversity of organisms. There are nursery areas located in the creeks and embayments of the estuarine system that are important to over 75 species of fish and shellfish. Shellfish beds are important as well to support the fisheries industry. However, there has been a decline in shellfish beds as a result of physical disturbance. Anadromous fish, fish that live in the oceans but migrate up freshwater rivers to spawn, use the estuarine system as a habitat for spawning. These fish include striped bass, shad and herring.

HABITAT FOR MANY PLANTS AND ANIMALS

• The Albemarle-Pamlico estuarine system is economically important to the region. Commercial fishing, tourism, recreation, and resort development are activities within the Sound that are economically important to the region. Ninety percent of the fish and shellfish caught by commercial fishermen rely on the estuary as a nursery habitat. The Sound also provides food, jobs and a mode of transportation for the people that live within the estuarine area.

ECONOMIC IMPORTANCE OF ALBEMARLE-PAMLICO ESTUARY

RECREATION AT PAMLICO

WHERE IS THE PAMLICO SOUND?

Back barrier sounds lie parallel to the coast, between the mainland shore and the barrier islands. The largest North Carolina estuary is the Albemarle-Pamlico Sound. Water drains into this system from eastern North Carolina and southeastern Virginia, from the Chowan, Roanoke, Pasquotank, Pamlico, and Neuse Rivers, from marshes, swamps, forests, and grasslands.

• Estuaries consist of an ecosystem where fresh water from rivers and streams meets with ocean saltwater. The plants and animals that live in estuaries must adapt to the different types of water for survival. Estuaries include mudflats, beaches, mangroves, and submerged vegetation and marshes. Nineteen states along the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans boast at least one estuary, offering ample opportunities to observe and explore these critical habitats. These are places where fish, birds and animals of all sorts congregate to feed, find refuge, grow to adulthood, and stage migrations. http://elements.nb.ca/theme/estuaries/janice/importance.htm

• Estuaries and Fish• Estuaries provide a nursery for the larval forms of some marine fish species, and provide shelter

and food for many young and adult fish and shellfish. These in turn provide food for other levels of the food chain including shore birds, waterfowl, larger fish and marine mammals. Many seafood species such as lobster, herring, menhaden, gaspereau, crab, oyster and clam rely on the rich food supply of estuaries during some part of their life cycle (Environment Canada, 1987).

WHY IS THE ESTUARY IMPORTANT?

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Estuaries help control erosion and reduce flooding of the mainland. Sand bars buffer the impact of waves, while plants and shellfish beds anchor the shore against tides. Swamps and marshes take the initial impact of high winds moving in from the ocean, soak up heavy rain and storm surges, and release the extra water gradually into rivers and groundwater supplies.

Estuaries are a type of environmental filter as plants and animals in estuaries filter pollutants out of the water. Particles in the water are either removed by chemical processes (aerobic respiration, sulfate reduction, methanogenesis) or by the feeding of estuarine animals and bacteria. For instance, salt marsh plants trap some of the chemicals and pathogens carried by rivers and move them into soils where they can be neutralized. Oysters filter impurities out of water as they eat, collecting the contaminants in their bodies. One oyster can filter twenty-five gallons of water per day. Bacteria eat organic matter found in the sediment and in turn release carbon dioxide, hydrogen sulfate and methane into the atmosphere preventing these gases from being excessively stored up in the estuary. However, toxins can accumulate in estuaries causing many environmental and health problems. (http://www.learnnc.org/lp/pages/544)

Estuaries are crucial.

• Mangrove trees, cord grass and lily pads Loblolli Milkwort

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PLANTS OF THE PAMLICO-ALBEMARLE ESTUARY

• Cord grass

MANGROVE TREES AND CORD GRASS ARE SOME OF THE ESTUARINE SPECIES THAT HAVE ADAPTED TO UNIQUE ENVIRONMENTAL CONDITIONS. IN ALMOST ALL ESTUARIES THE SALINITY OF THE WATER CHANGES CONSTANTLY OVER THE TIDAL CYCLE. TO SURVIVE IN THESE CONDITIONS, PLANTS AND ANIMALS LIVING IN ESTUARIES MUST BE ABLE TO RESPOND QUICKLY TO DRASTIC CHANGES IN SALINITY.

Mangrove treesCord crass

Salt meadows

Fanwort grows in water

Some mammals find estuaries an important food source, including black bears living along coastal areas. The bears turn over rocks on the mudflats to uncover invertebrates. Some bears use the mudflats to dig for clams, using their long nails to carefully pry open the shells so they can devour the clam inside. Smaller mammals include raccoons and opossums that hunt for small fish and invertebrates. Otters use estuaries for food and a place to raise their young. Red wolves were declared extinct in the wild in 1980, but red wolves bred in captivity were reintroduced in North Carolina beginning in the Alligator River National Wildlife Refuge in 1987. Eight wildlife refuges have been established along the North Carolina coast to protect the habitats of animals and birds.

MAMMALS

American river otter

Red wolf

Black bear hunting for clams

CREATURES OF THE PAMLICO-ALBEMARLE ESTUARY

Black bear Alligator

Green frog

Mosquito

RattlesnakeWater moccasinTurtle

Raccoon Terrapin

Raccoons use salt marshes to hunt for food. As omnivores, raccoons eat shell fish, including mollusks, blue crabs and Gulf crabs that come into the saltwater marsh at high tide. They also eat other small animals. Raccoons help plants grow in the salt marsh by helping disperse the seeds to new locations once the plant matter passes through their bodies.

One species of turtle that spends time in the saltwater marsh includes the Diamondback terrapin, a member of the pond and marsh turtle family. The turtle gets its name from the diamond-shaped markings and grooves on its top shell. The turtle's skin ranges in color from pale gray to black with dark spots or stripes. The turtles are often seen sunning themselves on mudflats during the day. Two other species, the Atlantic green and the Atlantic hawksbill turtles, live in the state's saltwater marshes although both are on the endangered and threatened list.

• Back barrier sounds

• Back barrier sounds lie parallel to the coast, between the mainland shore and the barrier islands.

• The largest North Carolina estuary is Pamlico Sound. Water drains into this system from eastern North Carolina and southeastern Virginia, from the Chowan, Roanoke, Pasquotank, Pamlico, and Neuse Rivers, from marshes, swamps, forests, and grasslands. (http://www.learnnc.org/lp/pages/544)

RIVERS, STREAMS, AND OTHER WATERWAYS

The wildlife living in estuary mudflats provide an abundance of food to much of the other wildlife. Shelled creatures such as mussels, clams, snails and amphipods live on the mudflats where they feed on detritus, disintegrated organic matter from dead plant material from marsh grasses, mangrove trees and sea grasses. The invertebrates also eat microscopic plants called phytoplankton. Segmented worms and lugworms also live in the mudflats. Once the mudflats are covered in water at high tide, bigger fish hunt for the invertebrates as their food source.

INVERTEBRATES

• Shorebirds use the mudflats as a food source all year round. During migration, sandpipers and dunlin stop at various mudflats and fuel their energy to continue to their nesting or wintering grounds. The long legs of great blue herons, great egrets and green herons make it easy for them to walk along the edges of the marshes as they search for their next meal. Thousands of snow geese that spend the winter along the coast in the Pacific Northwest spend hours each day digging for goodies in several of the estuary's habitats. Brant, a species of geese found in North America, eat the seeds of the marsh plants while snow geese eat bulrushes and sedges that grow underwater.

BIRDS

Snow geeseBlue heronDunlin

Sandpiper

• Some areas of the estuary are home to submerged aquatic plants that include bottom-dwelling algae and eelgrass, which are appealing to seahorses, blue crabs, turtles and fish. Young shrimp use the sea grasses to hide from predators until they're old enough to head out to the open sea. Fish in the estuary include snook, trout, mullet and redfish that all rely on the shallow waters as a food source. Catfish, sheepshead, silver perch and grouper also live in estuaries. Spiny lobsters, shrimps, crabs, oysters and clams require healthy estuaries for survival.

MARINE LIFE

• Excessive Nutrients

• Toxic Materials

• Erosion and Sedimentation

• Habitat Loss

WHAT THREATENS THE PAMLICO SOUND?

Nutrients are substances which help plants and animals grow. Two nutrients, nitrogen and phosphorous, are present in plant fertilizer and wastes from animals and people. Rain can wash fertilizer from lawns and fields into streams and the Sounds. This type of pollution is called "nonpoint source" since it does not come from a single point, but it is from water running off a large land area. Sewage treatment plants and leaky septic systems can also add nutrients to the water. When pollution comes from a single point, such as an outfall pipe, it is called "point source" pollution.

When too many nutrients get into the water, they disturb the natural balance by allowing too much algae (microscopic plants) to grow. The algae cloud the water and block vital sunlight to underwater plants (submerged aquatic vegetation or SAV). When the algae die and decay, they use up much of the oxygen needed by fish and shellfish, often killing them. https://www.fws.gov/nc-es/edout/albewhatwrong.html

EXCESSIVE NUTRIENTS

• Toxics are chemicals that can cause cancer (carcinogens) or other harmful effects. Their effects can be immediate such as a poison, or occur very slowly such as with cancer. Streams and rivers are very effective at hiding the effects of poisons. Often the fish that are killed are not seen. They may be small and hard to see or eaten by turtles, snakes, crabs, or other scavengers. Modern pesticides (i.e., chemicals used to kill animals, insects, or plants) used on lawns and fields are very poisonous but, fortunately, they break down much more quickly than older pesticides such as DDT. Because these modem pesticides are toxic they should not be used near rivers or streams or along roads with storm drains which lead to a stream. Cancer-causing substances enter our rivers from municipal sewage treatment plants or industrial discharges and sometimes from nonpoint source discharges. Although we are usually exposed to low concentrations of carcinogens, there are thousands of cancer-causing agents. The cumulative effects of these agents is not fully understood. https://www.fws.gov/nc-es/edout/albewhatwrong.html

TOXIC MATERIALS

• Every time it rains around the Albemarle-Pamlico watershed, water erodes the land. The precious soil which washes away into streams is called sediment. Sediments are carried downstream and may eventually enter the Sounds, where they settle out of the water and cover the bottom.

• Sediments can harm Sound life in several ways. Sediment particles pick up toxic materials on their surface and concentrate them on the bottom of the Sound. Floating or suspended sediment clouds the water, cutting off light to submerged plants. Excess sediment smothers clams, oysters, and other bottom dwellers.


EROSION AND SEDIMENTATION

• An animal’s habitat is its home. Habitat provides shelter, food, water, and space. As more and more people come to live and work around the Albemarle and Pamlico Sounds, more and more habitat is being lost. Some animals, such as squirrels, can adapt to these changes and learn to coexist with humans. But many others, such as black bears, bald eagles, and black ducks, do not adapt well to change. Habitat damage and loss can decrease a population of plants or animals or even cause extinction.

• Wetlands, one of the most important types of habitat, are threatened all around the Albemarle-Pamlico watershed. They are filled in for development, drained for agriculture, or dredged for marinas. Pollution has degraded water quality in the Sounds and their rivers, resulting in declines of important submerged plants and scallops.


HABITAT LOSS

HABITAT SWEET HABITAT

Some of the flora and fauna native to the upland creeks, the salt marsh, and the mudflats.

• City Sewage Treatment Plants: Due to an increase in population, many sewage treatment plants receive more wastewater than they have been designed to handle. Often this leads to discharge of poorly treated sewage into our rivers and streams.

• Industry: Treating wastewater to the extent that it does not harm the environment takes a special effort. Certain industries do excellent jobs of cleaning their wastewater, but others do not. Since industries release tens of millions of gallons of wastewater into our rivers every day, proper treatment is essential.

• Agriculture and Forestry: Farms and forestry operations that allow sediment or pesticides to enter our rivers and streams, or that infringe upon wetlands, damage our estuary.

• Development: Runoff during construction and from parking lots should be controlled to prevent erosion. Wetland areas should be preserved; they do not make good locations for homes and shopping centers.

• Consumers: Most environmental problems are ultimately caused by the consumer. Industry and business must make a profit to provide jobs. We, as individuals, can help by doing our share. We can buy environmentally sound products such as brown paper; do without immaculate lawns which require fertilizers and pesticides; and do not waste water.


WHERE ARE THESE PROBLEMS?

Estuaries are fragile ecosystems that are very susceptible to disturbances. Natural disturbances are caused by the forces of nature, while anthropogenic disturbances are caused by people. Natural disturbances include winds, tidal currents, waves, and ice. Anthropogenic disturbances include pollution, coastal development, and the introduction of non-native species to an area. http://oceanservice.noaa.gov/education/kits/estuaries/estuaries08_natdisturb.html

Natural disturbances to estuaries

• The Sounds depend on us for life just as we depend on the Sounds. Therefore, it is extremely important that we exercise great care with our actions. We must become responsible citizen caretakers of the Albemarle-Pamlico watershed in order to restore and preserve our natural neighborhood.

• Conserve water. Take short showers; run dish and clothes washers only when full; and place a plastic bottle in the toilet tank to reduce the amount of water flushed.

• Make certain your septic system is working well and is not overflowing.

• Use household chemicals and pesticides carefully. Choose the least toxic material, and buy only what you need. Follow instructions, and dispose of leftovers carefully.

• Plant vegetation along streams to prevent soil erosion and to absorb excess nutrients from fertilizers.

• Recycle used oil, paper, aluminum cans, and glass.

• Use a sewage pump-out station on land to empty boat toilets.

• Observe posted boat speed limits. Large wakes from boats can erode shorelines and banks.

• Clean up debris and trash from a local stream to improve stream flow and water quality.


HOW CAN I HELP?

• American Oceans Campaign (1996). Estuaries on the Edge: The Vital Link Between Land and Sea. Washington, DC: American Oceans Campaign.

• North Carolina Division of Marine Fisheries. “Fish habitat information.” Accessed July 10, 2006.

• U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. County Species List for North Carolina, March 2006.

• O. H. Pilkey et al (1998). The North Carolina Shore and Its Barrier Islands: Restless Ribbons of Sand. Durham, NC: Duke University Press

• D. Frankenberg (1997). The Nature of North Carolina’s Southern Coast: Barrier Islands, Coastal Waters, and Wetlands: An ecotourist’s guide to the North Carolina coast, from Portsmouth Island to Calabash. Chapel Hill, NC: University of North Carolina Press.

• http://elements.nb.ca/theme/estuaries/janice/importance.htm


• http://omp.gso.uri.edu/ompweb/doee/science/descript/albpam.htm

• Photos courtesy of Creative Commons and Flickr

SOURCES

http://elements.nb.ca/theme/estuaries/janice/importance.htm

https://www.fws.gov/nc-es/edout/albewhatwrong.html

Education

Pamlico sound estuary