Bay Facts
The Bay is full of interesting facts and trivia related to its history, wildlife, geography and more.
4,863 feet above sea level
At 4,863 feet above sea level, Spruce Knob is the highest point in the Chesapeake watershed.
21 feet deep
The Bay is surprisingly shallow. Its average depth, including all tidal tributaries, is about 21 feet. A person who is six feet tall could wade through more than 700,000 acres of the Bay and never get his or her hat wet.
70 acres of forest lost each day
Forests cover 55% of the Chesapeake Bay watershed. Between 1990 and 2005, the watershed lost an estimated 100 acres of forest land each day. While this rate fell in 2006 to an estimated 70 acres per day, this rate is still unsustainable.
Learn moreCaptain John Smith visits the Bay
In 1608, Captain John Smith set off on the first of two voyages where he charted the land and waterways, and later drew an elaborate and remarkably accurate map of the Chesapeake Bay.
Learn more3,600 species of plants and animals
The Bay supports more than 3,600 species of plants and animals, including 348 species of finfish, 173 species of shellfish, over 2,700 plant species and more than 16 species of underwater grasses.
Learn more4-30 mile width
The Bay’s width ranges from four miles near Aberdeen, Maryland, to 30 miles near cape Charles, Virginia.
Longest river fully within Maryland
The 110-mile-long Patuxent River is the longest river to flow exclusively within the borders of Maryland.
200 miles long
The Bay itself is about 200 miles long, stretching from Havre de Grace, Maryland, to Virginia Beach, Virginia.
First recorded European to enter the Bay
In 1524, Italian Captain Giovanni da Verrazano became the first recorded European to enter the Chesapeake Bay.
18.5 million people
The Chesapeake Bay watershed is home to more than 18 and a half million people. Ten million of them live along or near the Bay’s shores. About 150,000 new people move into the Bay watershed each year.
Learn more100,000 smaller tributaries
The Chesapeake Bay watershed has 150 major rivers and streams, but contains more than 100,000 smaller tributaries.
35.5 million years
The formation of the Chesapeake Bay happened 35.5 million years ago when a meteor collided with Earth, forming a massive crater.
The Bay's largest tributary
The Susquehanna River is the Bay’s largest tributary, and contributes about half of the Bay’s freshwater (about 19 million gallons per minute).
500 million pounds of seafood
The Bay produces about 500 million pounds of seafood per year.
9.6 million acres of land
Approximately 9.6 million acres of land in the Bay watershed have been permanently protected from development by Bay Program partners.
Learn moreThe Powhatan tribes
There were many different tribes in the region before Europeans arrived, but the dominant group were Algonquian speakers known collectively as the Powhatan tribes.
87 species of waterbirds
During the winter, the Bay supports 87 species of waterbirds. Of these wintering waterbirds, 14 species rely on the Bay to serve as habitat for more than 10% of their continental populations.
11,684 miles of shoreline
The Bay and its tidal tributaries have 11,684 miles of shoreline—more than the entire U.S. west coast.
84 degrees Fahrenheit
Water temperatures in the Bay fluctuate widely throughout the year, reaching as high as 84 degrees in summer.
2 of 5 major ports
Two of the United States’ five major North Atlantic ports—Baltimore and Hampton Roads—are on the Bay.
12 miles wide
The mouth of the Chesapeake Bay is about 12 miles wide between its northern point near Cape Charles, Virginia, and its southern point close to Cape Henry, Virginia.
10 U.S. presidents
There have been 10 U.S. presidents from the Chesapeake Bay watershed, including George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, James Monroe, William Henry Harrison, John Tyler, Zachary Taylor, Woodrow Wilson, James Buchanan and Joe Biden.
200 invasive species
There are as many as 200 invasive species present in the Chesapeake Bay watershed that are causing some serious issues in an already-stressed ecosystem. Some examples include blue catfish, snakehead, zebra mussel, purple loosestrife, and nutria.
Remnants of an ancient river
A few deep troughs run along much of the Bay’s length and are believed to be remnants of the ancient Susquehanna River.