Megae Bay Research Paper

Starting with the food chain in Chesapeake bay, the plants and algae play the basis role in food chain. They make their own food by sunlight. These plants and algae are bay grass and free floating algae. The plants and algae not only feeds all other organisms in the water but also gives homes and shelter for other organisms. Frogs lay their eggs on the bay grass, giving the tadpoles a home. Fish use the grass for shelter, to hide and protect themselves. Next in the food chain are copepods, which are very small organisms in the animal community, which are mostly referred to as zooplankton. These zooplankton consume the algae and bay grass. The next link in the food chain are anchovies. Anchovies consume the zooplankton. The anchovies are then eaten by tertiary consumers, which are the bigger fish. The last link in the food chain are humans. We then eat the bigger fish (Food Web). Now, if the algae and bay grass population decreases, then all of the other organisms population in the

Pollutants from factories, cars, boats, and litter are all the things humans use to pollute the bay. The bay contains a high amount of phosphorus and nitrogen. Phosphorus and nitrogen are needed for organisms and plants to be able to survive. However, an excess amount of phosphorus and nitrogen degrade the quality of Chesapeake bays water. Phosphorus and nitrogen feed algae blooms that block sunlight to the underwater bay grass and leaving a low supply of oxygen in the water. All organisms need oxygen to survive and when their is not enough oxygen, it leaves plants and animals to die. The area of water where there is a low count of oxygen are often called a dead zones. Also, an increase of the pH level in the water can be created because of algae blooms. The toxic killing algae can make humans sick. For the aquatic animals, these toxins attack mainly the organisms liver and nervous system (Nitrogen and