IAN Seminar Series

The Delmarva/Choptank River Complex, which includes the Choptank and Little Choptank Rivers, is located on Maryland's Eastern Shore. This area is a treasured part of the Chesapeake Bay ecosystem, representing critical habitat for spawning striped bass and river herring, as well as historically abundant oyster reefs. Residents of the watershed, including many families who have lived there for multiple generations, have traditionally been employed in agriculture or commercial fishing. But time are changing in the region. Continued human population growth and land development threaten key habitats for fish and aquatic resources. The historical loss of wetlands in the upper Choptank River subwatershed is estimated to be 47,400 acres, approximately 11% of the total watershed area. Climate change and sea level rise, combined with land subsidence, further threaten losses of nearshore marshes and coastal environments. While the rivers and Bay have supported major annual seafood harvests in previous years, fishery res