Instructions

Your essay answer should be clear and succinct, amounting to perhaps 3-5 sentences totaling 50 to 80 words; longer essays are strongly discouraged. It is recommended that you prepare your answer in a separate document from which you copy it into Canvas.

Question 1 5 pts

Describe the two major controls that play a role in the mixing of saltwater and freshwater in estuaries and how the relative importance of these two factors determines the resultant salinity characteristics of the estuary.

A strong answer will describe the two major factors that determine the salinity characteristics of estuaries, noting the names given to the three types of estuarine circulation that are produced, and describing their characteristics in terms of both the changes in salinity from river to ocean and the extent of stratification within the estuary.

Question 2 1 pts

Which of the following types of estuary is most likely to be strongly stratified with stagnant bottom waters?

Question 3 1 pts

What is the major difference between food webs in estuaries and those in the open ocean?

Question 4 3 pts

Identify which label best describes the characteristics of each of the three specific locations (A, B, C) in the Google Earth images of coastal estuaries. (Individual options for answers can be used more than once.)

Location A in Image 1

[ Choose ]Flood deltaSalt marshRiver deltaSand dunesTidal flats

Location B in Image 2

[ Choose ]Flood deltaSalt marshRiver deltaSand dunesTidal flats

Location C in Image 3

[ Choose ]Flood deltaSalt marshRiver deltaSand dunesTidal flats