Great Bay (New Jersey)
Encyclopedia
Great Bay is located in southern New Jersey's
Atlantic Coastal Plain
in Ocean
and Atlantic Counties
, about ten miles (13 km) north of Atlantic City and 87 mi (140 km) south of New York City
. The Mullica River
flows into the bay
, and together they form the Mullica River - Great Bay estuary habitat. The bay is connected to the Atlantic Ocean
via the Little Egg Inlet
. Great Bay is considered one of the least-disturbed marine wetland
s habitats in the northeastern United States
.
are covered with benthic algae
and some vascular plants (seagrasses). Eelgrass
(Zostera marina) beds are an important component of the submerged aquatic vegetation
(SAV) community in Great Bay, generally where depths are 1 meter (3.2 ft) or less but, due to the slightly greater depth in Great Bay, these are not as ubiquitous as they are in the Barnegat/Manahawkin/Little Egg system to the north. Extensive areas (13.58 km² [3,355 acres]) of intertidal sandflats and mudflats occur in the bay, a result of the sediment load from the Mullica River and the movement of sand in through Little Egg Inlet.
, menhaden
, and spot (Leiostomas xanthurus), as well as spawning habitat for winter spawners such as sandlance (Ammodytes americanus) and winter flounder and summer spawners like bay anchovy (Anchoa mitchilli), silversides (Menidia spp.), gobies (Gobiosoma spp.), wrasses (Labridae spp.), and northern pipefish (Syngnathus fuscus).
Fisheries investigations were conducted in the 1970s by the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection
to determine the fishery composition and life stages of estuarine fish using this specific bay. Sixty-six species were caught during these studies and, as in the Barnegat system, the catches were dominated by forage species, with bay anchovy and Atlantic silverside (Menidia menidia) being very abundant. The top ranked fish by their relative abundance were: bay anchovy
(Anchoa mitchilli), Atlantic silverside
(Menidia menidia), silver perch
(Bairdiella chrysoura), alewife
(Alosa pseudoharengus), striped killifish (Fundulus majalis), sea herring (Clupea harengus), white perch
(Morone americana), northern puffer (Sphoeroides maculatus), oyster toadfish (Opsanus tau), and striped anchovy (Anchoa hepsetus). Commercial fisheries activities include the harvest of northern quahog (Mercenaria mercenaria), blue crab (Callinectes sapidus), white perch, winter flounder, and American eel
(Anguilla rostrata). The bay is an important spawning and nursery area for blue crab. The area between Graveling Point and the Wading River tributaries supports large eastern oyster (Crassostrea virginica) beds, many of which are considered extremely productive seed beds.
from its headwater streams to its connection with the New York Bight
through Little Egg Inlet. Included are all riverine and estuarine wetlands to the limit of tidal influence of the Mullica River and its tributaries, the open waters of Great Bay and adjacent salt marsh habitat from the mouth of the Mullica River to Little Egg Inlet, and the inlet itself. This nearly pristine estuary provides seasonal or year-round habitat for a variety of anadromous, estuarine, marine, and freshwater fish and shellfish, nesting and migratory waterbirds and raptors, migratory and wintering waterfowl, and rare brackish and freshwater tidal communities and plants. Also included in the habitat complex are several small palustrine
(nontidal) wetlands immediately adjacent to the estuary that contain exemplary rare natural communities and plant occurrences. Great Bay is part of the New Jersey backbarrier lagoon system, and the resources here are similar to those found in the Barnegat Bay
complex to the north and the Brigantine Bay and Marsh complex to the south. The watershed of the Mullica River in the New Jersey Pinelands
is described as part of the New Jersey Pinelands narrative. The majority of the watershed is protected by the Pinelands Management Area, several large federal and state wildlife management areas, and state forests.
The coastal salt, brackish, and freshwater marshes in the Mullica River - Great Bay estuary are extremely important to waterfowl, raptor
s, wading birds, and shorebirds. Raptors utilize the tidal marshes for nesting and for foraging throughout the year. Osprey
nest on platforms in numerous locations throughout the salt marshes of this system. Significant concentrations of migrating and wintering waterfowl occur in the Mullica River - Great Bay estuary, with an average of over 12,000 waterfowl counted on midwinter aerial surveys.
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
Atlantic Coastal Plain
Atlantic Coastal Plain
The Atlantic coastal plain has both low elevation and low relief, but it is also a relatively flat landform extending from the New York Bight southward to a Georgia/Florida section of the Eastern Continental Divide, which demarcates the plain from the ACF River Basin in the Gulf Coastal Plain to...
in Ocean
Ocean County, New Jersey
-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 510,916 people, 200,402 households, and 137,876 families residing in the county. The population density was 803 people per square mile . There were 248,711 housing units at an average density of 151/km²...
and Atlantic Counties
Atlantic County, New Jersey
-National protected areas:* Edwin B. Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge * Great Egg Harbor Scenic and Recreational River -Demographics:...
, about ten miles (13 km) north of Atlantic City and 87 mi (140 km) south of New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
. The Mullica River
Mullica River
The Mullica River is a river in southern New Jersey in the United States. The Mullica was once known as the Little Egg Harbor River.The river provides one of the principal drainages into the Atlantic Ocean of the extensive Pinelands...
flows into the bay
Bay
A bay is an area of water mostly surrounded by land. Bays generally have calmer waters than the surrounding sea, due to the surrounding land blocking some waves and often reducing winds. Bays also exist as an inlet in a lake or pond. A large bay may be called a gulf, a sea, a sound, or a bight...
, and together they form the Mullica River - Great Bay estuary habitat. The bay is connected to the Atlantic Ocean
Atlantic Ocean
The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's oceanic divisions. With a total area of about , it covers approximately 20% of the Earth's surface and about 26% of its water surface area...
via the Little Egg Inlet
Little Egg Inlet
Little Egg Inlet is an inlet connecting the Atlantic Ocean and the Great Bay along the southeastern coast of New Jersey. Little Egg Inlet forms a maritime border separating Little Egg Harbor Township in southern Ocean County and Galloway Township in northeastern Atlantic County.Hurricane Irene made...
. Great Bay is considered one of the least-disturbed marine wetland
Wetland
A wetland is an area of land whose soil is saturated with water either permanently or seasonally. Wetlands are categorised by their characteristic vegetation, which is adapted to these unique soil conditions....
s habitats in the northeastern United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
.
General
Great Bay averages about 1.5 meters (5 ft) in depth, and extensive areas of the estuarine substratumStratum
In geology and related fields, a stratum is a layer of sedimentary rock or soil with internally consistent characteristics that distinguish it from other layers...
are covered with benthic algae
Algae
Algae are a large and diverse group of simple, typically autotrophic organisms, ranging from unicellular to multicellular forms, such as the giant kelps that grow to 65 meters in length. They are photosynthetic like plants, and "simple" because their tissues are not organized into the many...
and some vascular plants (seagrasses). Eelgrass
Zostera
Zostera is a small genus of widely distributed seagrass, commonly called marine eelgrass or simply eelgrass . The genus Zostera contains sixteen species.-Ecology:Zostera is found on sandy substrates or in estuaries submerged or partially floating...
(Zostera marina) beds are an important component of the submerged aquatic vegetation
Aquatic plant
Aquatic plants are plants that have adapted to living in aquatic environments. They are also referred to as hydrophytes or aquatic macrophytes. These plants require special adaptations for living submerged in water, or at the water's surface. Aquatic plants can only grow in water or in soil that is...
(SAV) community in Great Bay, generally where depths are 1 meter (3.2 ft) or less but, due to the slightly greater depth in Great Bay, these are not as ubiquitous as they are in the Barnegat/Manahawkin/Little Egg system to the north. Extensive areas (13.58 km² [3,355 acres]) of intertidal sandflats and mudflats occur in the bay, a result of the sediment load from the Mullica River and the movement of sand in through Little Egg Inlet.
Sealife
Finfish make up an important component of the bay's ecosystem. The bay provides an important nursery area for bluefish, weakfishWeakfish
The weakfish, Cynoscion regalis, is a marine fish of the drum family Sciaenidae.The head and back of this fish are dark brown in color with a greenish tinge. The sides have a faint silvery hue with dusky specks, and the belly is white. The origin of its name is based on the weakness of the mouth...
, menhaden
Menhaden
Menhaden, also known as mossbunker, bunker and pogy, are forage fish of the genera Brevoortia and Ethmidium, two genera of marine fish in the family Clupeidae.-Description:...
, and spot (Leiostomas xanthurus), as well as spawning habitat for winter spawners such as sandlance (Ammodytes americanus) and winter flounder and summer spawners like bay anchovy (Anchoa mitchilli), silversides (Menidia spp.), gobies (Gobiosoma spp.), wrasses (Labridae spp.), and northern pipefish (Syngnathus fuscus).
Fisheries investigations were conducted in the 1970s by the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection
New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection
The New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection is a government agency in the U.S. state of New Jersey that is responsible for managing the state's natural resources and addressing issues related to pollution...
to determine the fishery composition and life stages of estuarine fish using this specific bay. Sixty-six species were caught during these studies and, as in the Barnegat system, the catches were dominated by forage species, with bay anchovy and Atlantic silverside (Menidia menidia) being very abundant. The top ranked fish by their relative abundance were: bay anchovy
Anchovy
Anchovies are a family of small, common salt-water forage fish. There are 144 species in 17 genera, found in the Atlantic, Indian, and Pacific Oceans. Anchovies are usually classified as an oily fish.-Description:...
(Anchoa mitchilli), Atlantic silverside
Atlantic silverside
The Atlantic silverside, Menidia menidia, is one of the most common fish in the Chesapeake Bay and in the Barnegat Bay. It is a common subject of scientific research because has a sensitivity to environmental changes....
(Menidia menidia), silver perch
American silver perch
The American silver perch, Bairdiella chrysoura, is an American fish. Widespread on the eastern seaboard, the silver perch is commonly caught by inshore anglers in search of larger species. Rarely attains...
(Bairdiella chrysoura), alewife
Alewife
The alewife is a species of herring. There are anadromous and landlocked forms. The landlocked form is also called a sawbelly or mooneye...
(Alosa pseudoharengus), striped killifish (Fundulus majalis), sea herring (Clupea harengus), white perch
White perch
The white perch, Morone americana, is not a true perch but is, rather, a fish of the temperate bass family, Moronidae, notable as a food and game fish in eastern North America.The name "white perch" is sometimes erroneously applied to the white crappie....
(Morone americana), northern puffer (Sphoeroides maculatus), oyster toadfish (Opsanus tau), and striped anchovy (Anchoa hepsetus). Commercial fisheries activities include the harvest of northern quahog (Mercenaria mercenaria), blue crab (Callinectes sapidus), white perch, winter flounder, and American eel
American eel
The American eel, Anguilla rostrata, is a catadromous fish found on the eastern coast of North America. It has a snake-like body with a small sharp pointed head. It is brown on top and a tan-yellow color on the bottom. It has sharp pointed teeth but no pelvic fins...
(Anguilla rostrata). The bay is an important spawning and nursery area for blue crab. The area between Graveling Point and the Wading River tributaries supports large eastern oyster (Crassostrea virginica) beds, many of which are considered extremely productive seed beds.
Mullica River - Great Bay estuary
The Mullica River - Great Bay estuary habitat complex encompasses the entire Mullica River - Great Bay estuary and tidal riverTidal river
A tidal river is a river, or more typically a stretch of a river, whose flow and level is influenced by tides. An example of a tidal river is the portion of the Connecticut River flowing from Windsor Locks, Connecticut, to the Atlantic Ocean. The Brisbane River, which flows into the Pacific Ocean...
from its headwater streams to its connection with the New York Bight
New York Bight
The New York Bight is a slight indentation along the Atlantic coast of the United States, extending northeasterly from Cape May Inlet in New Jersey to Montauk Point on the eastern tip of Long Island...
through Little Egg Inlet. Included are all riverine and estuarine wetlands to the limit of tidal influence of the Mullica River and its tributaries, the open waters of Great Bay and adjacent salt marsh habitat from the mouth of the Mullica River to Little Egg Inlet, and the inlet itself. This nearly pristine estuary provides seasonal or year-round habitat for a variety of anadromous, estuarine, marine, and freshwater fish and shellfish, nesting and migratory waterbirds and raptors, migratory and wintering waterfowl, and rare brackish and freshwater tidal communities and plants. Also included in the habitat complex are several small palustrine
Palustrine
Palustrine comes from the Latin word palus or marsh. Wetlands within this category include inland marshes and swamps as well as bogs, fens, tundra and floodplains...
(nontidal) wetlands immediately adjacent to the estuary that contain exemplary rare natural communities and plant occurrences. Great Bay is part of the New Jersey backbarrier lagoon system, and the resources here are similar to those found in the Barnegat Bay
Barnegat Bay
Barnegat Bay is a small brackish arm of the Atlantic Ocean, approximately 30 miles long, along the coast of Ocean County, New Jersey in the United States. It is a long barrier peninsula, as well as by the north end of Long Beach Island...
complex to the north and the Brigantine Bay and Marsh complex to the south. The watershed of the Mullica River in the New Jersey Pinelands
Pine Barrens (New Jersey)
The Pine Barrens, also known as the Pinelands, is a heavily forested area of coastal plain stretching across southern New Jersey. The name "pine barrens" refers to the area's sandy, acidic, nutrient-poor soil, to which the crops originally imported by European settlers didn't take well...
is described as part of the New Jersey Pinelands narrative. The majority of the watershed is protected by the Pinelands Management Area, several large federal and state wildlife management areas, and state forests.
The coastal salt, brackish, and freshwater marshes in the Mullica River - Great Bay estuary are extremely important to waterfowl, raptor
Bird of prey
Birds of prey are birds that hunt for food primarily on the wing, using their keen senses, especially vision. They are defined as birds that primarily hunt vertebrates, including other birds. Their talons and beaks tend to be relatively large, powerful and adapted for tearing and/or piercing flesh....
s, wading birds, and shorebirds. Raptors utilize the tidal marshes for nesting and for foraging throughout the year. Osprey
Osprey
The Osprey , sometimes known as the sea hawk or fish eagle, is a diurnal, fish-eating bird of prey. It is a large raptor, reaching more than in length and across the wings...
nest on platforms in numerous locations throughout the salt marshes of this system. Significant concentrations of migrating and wintering waterfowl occur in the Mullica River - Great Bay estuary, with an average of over 12,000 waterfowl counted on midwinter aerial surveys.