Full report - Conservation Gateway

Chapter 1 - IntroductionSea TurtlesSea turtles are large, air-breathing reptiles that utilizeboth oceanic (inner shelf region and offshore) and terrestrial(beach) ecosystems. Their highly migratory and longlivedlife history characteristics present unique challengesto their continued protection and recovery. Sea turtlesmay have once comprised an important component of theregion’s coastal food webs, consuming prey including fish,invertebrates, and sea grasses. Three species of sea turtle(green, leatherback and loggerhead) were selected basedupon their status as endangered species and distributionwithin the region.Coastal and Marine BirdsBirds are creatures of both land and sea. Seabirds spendthe majority of their life at sea, but return to coastal areasto breed, while shorebirds spend their lives on thecoastal land edge, but forage in marine environments.In some cases, these birds may connect geographicallydisparate marine environments, from southern SouthAmerica to the Arctic. World-wide, a higher percentageof seabird species are at risk of extinction than any otherbird group. Within this region, a number of coastal andmarine bird species are listed as state and federally threatenedor endangered and nine were chosen for this study(Arctic Tern, Audubon’s Shearwater, Barrow’s Goldeneye,Harlequin Duck, Least Tern, Piping Plover, Razorbill,Red Knot, and Roseate Tern).Biodiversity ThreatsPollution and Nutrient RunoffThe Northwest Atlantic’s major estuaries of Albemarleand Pamlico Sounds, Chesapeake Bay, Delaware Bay,Long Island Sound, Narragansett Bay, Massachusetts Bay,Penobscot Bay and the Bay of Fundy support enormousbiodiversity, but also introduce runoff of nutrients (nitrogenand phosphorus) to the sea from land-based humanactivities such as agriculture and urban development.In Chesapeake Bay, for example, nutrients from sewagetreatment plant discharges and farming cause extensiveblooms of algae. When the algae dies and decomposes,dissolved oxygen is removed from the water, creating aso-called dead zone of hypoxic, or oxygen-starved, water.In July 2003, the dead zone covered 40 percent of theBay’s main stem, the largest area in 20 years, causing stressand habitat loss for crabs, fish and oysters (ChesapeakeBay Foundation 2008).Intensified occurrences of another phenomenon knownas Sudden Wetland Dieback (SWD) have been reportedto occur along the East Coast, including Delaware’s inlandbays, within the past decade. SWD is often characterizedby rapid death, or failure to grow for a season ormore, of the upper portion of marsh vegetation, primarilySaltmarsh cordgrass (Spartina alterniflora). Sometimescomplete death occurs. The cause of marsh dieback is unknown,though the cumulative effect of multiple environmentalfactors are suspected (Bason et al. 2007).Coastal Development and Population TrendsThe Northeast region from Maine to Virginia is the mostdensely populated coastal region in the United Stateswith 641 persons living per square mile in the coastalcounties of those states in 2003. The population densityof Northeast coastal counties increased from 543 persquare mile in 1980 and is expected to increase to 661 in2008 (Crosset et al. 2004). While these growth rates are© Reuven Walder/ Marine Photobank1-10Northwest Atlantic Marine Ecoregional Assessment • Phase 1 Report