GEOLOGY

Detailed explanation-1: -Estuaries and their surrounding wetlands are bodies of water usually found where rivers meet the sea. Estuaries are home to unique plant and animal communities that have adapted to brackish water-a mixture of fresh water draining from the land and salty seawater.

Detailed explanation-2: -Estuaries are often called the “nurseries of the sea, ” because so many animals reproduce and spend the early part of their lives there. Salty seawater mixes with fresh water draining from the land to create habitats with unique conditions that are not found elsewhere.

Detailed explanation-3: -Freshwater estuaries are semi-enclosed areas of the Great Lakes in which the waters become mixed with waters from rivers or streams. Although these freshwater estuaries do not contain saltwater, they are unique combinations of river and lake water, which are chemically distinct.

Detailed explanation-4: -An estuary is a partially enclosed, coastal water body where freshwater from rivers and streams mixes with salt water from the ocean. Estuaries, and their surrounding lands, are places of transition from land to sea.

Detailed explanation-5: -In Ohio, Old Woman Creek is an example of a freshwater estuary, where river water meets lake water, as the creek pours out into Lake Erie. Freshwater estuaries can be found across the Great Lakes, with more than 20 just on Wisconsin’s Lake Superior shore.