This fall, the largest female sturgeon in the Atlantic sturgeon gillnetting survey’s history was captured by Maryland DNR biologists. The fish was netted along Marshyhope Creek, a tributary of the Nanticoke River. Nicknamed Chessie, the large female measured just under … Continued
Underwater grass abundance in Maryland’s portion of the Chesapeake Bay fell from 38,188 acres in 2023 to 36,794 acres in 2024, according to data reviewed by the Maryland Department of Natural Resources. To total acreage of submerged aquatic vegetation (SAV) … Continued
In May, results of the 2025 Chesapeake Bay Blue Crab Winter Dredge Survey were released by the Maryland Department of Natural Resources (DNR) and the Virginia Institute of Marine Science (VIMS). The annual cooperative survey estimates the number of blue … Continued
The 2025 Maryland benchmark assessment indicates that oyster populations have grown significantly in Maryland’s Chesapeake Bay waters over the past 20 years. The Maryland Department of Natural Resources and the University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science released the summary … Continued
Preliminary results of the Maryland Department of Natural Resources’ annual Fall Oyster Survey indicate that Chesapeake Bay oyster populations are healthy. After a remarkable year for oyster reproduction in 2023, the survey’s 2024 spatfall intensity index, a measure of reproductive … Continued
In the fall of 2024, the Interstate Commission on the Potomac River Basin (ICPRB) and its partners at the USGS Eastern Ecological Science Center in West Virginia and the USGS Earth Resources Observation and Science (EROS) Center in South Dakota … Continued
A new study by the Maryland Department of Natural Resources (DNR) confirms the negative impact northern snakeheads have on other fish and the ecosystem. A comparison of fish communities in the Blackwater River drainage near Cambridge before and after the … Continued
Surveys of juvenile striped bass in the Chesapeake Bay watershed found lower numbers of fish in 2024. Conducted by biologists in Maryland and Virginia, the surveys included counts of juvenile striped bass and other species in waters of the Chesapeake … Continued
Abundance of submerged aquatic vegetation (SAV) remained steady in 2023 in the state’s portion of Chesapeake Bay, reaching 37,770 acres, according to recently released data by the Chesapeake Bay Program and Maryland’s Department of Natural Resources (DNR). Surveys indicate a … Continued
The Maryland Department of Natural Resources (DNR) and the Virginia Institute of Marine Science (VIMS) recently announced the results of the 2024 Blue Crab Winter Dredge Survey. The annual cooperative survey estimates the number of blue crabs in the Chesapeake … Continued