| Description |
1 online resource (xviii, 146 pages) |
| Physical Medium |
polychrome |
| Description |
text file |
| Bibliography |
Includes bibliographical references and index. |
| Contents |
Shifting baselines in Chesapeake Bay, the immense protein factory -- Why was Chesapeake Bay so productive and how has that productivity changed? -- The spring fishery for shad and river herring was a hectic scramble -- The world's greatest oyster fishery expanded, then crashed -- Diamond-backed terrapins were once pig food, then a gourmet delight, and now a protected species -- Uncontrolled market hunting of waterfowl led to mass slaughter -- Sturgeon, a prehistoric high jumper, fell from memory -- Blue crabs hung on tenaciously -- Have diminished animal abundances remodeled the bay's food webs? |
| Summary |
The concept of "shifting baselines"--Changes in historical reference points used in environmental assessments--illuminates a foundational challenge when evaluating the health of ecosystems and seeking to restore degraded wildlife populations. In this important book, Victor S. Kennedy examines the problem of shifting baselines for one of the most productive aquatic resources in the world: the Chesapeake Bay. Kennedy explains that since the 1800s, when the Bay area was celebrated for its aquatic bounty, harvest baselines have shifted downward precipitously. Over the centuries, fishers and hunters, supported by an extensive infrastructure of boats, gear, and processing facilities, overexploited the region's fish, crustaceans, terrapin, and waterfowl, squandering a profound resource. Beginning with the colonial period and continuing through the twentieth century, Kennedy gathers an unparalleled collection of scientific resources and eyewitness reports by colonists, fishers, managers, scientists, and newspaper reporters to create a comprehensive examination of the Chesapeake's environmental history. Focusing on the relative productivity and health of its fisheries and wildlife and highlighting key species such as shad, oysters, and blue crab, Shifting Baselines in the Chesapeake Bay helps readers understand the remarkable extent of the Bay's natural resources in the past so that we can begin to understand what has changed since, and why. Such knowledge can help illustrate the Bay's potential fertility and stimulate efforts to restore this pivotal maritime system's ecological health and productivity. |
| Local Note |
eBooks on EBSCOhost EBSCO eBook Subscription Academic Collection - North America |
| Subject |
Coastal ecosystem health -- Chesapeake Bay (Md. and Va.)
|
|
Coastal ecosystem health. |
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Marine ecosystem health -- Chesapeake Bay (Md. and Va.)
|
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Marine ecosystem health. |
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Chesapeake Bay (Md. and Va.) -- Environmental conditions.
|
| Genre/Form |
Electronic books.
|
| Other Form: |
Print version: Kennedy, Victor S. Shifting baselines in the Chesapeake Bay. Baltimore : Johns Hopkins University Press, 2018 9781421426549 (DLC) 2018002479 (OCoLC)1031049915 |
| ISBN |
9781421426556 (electronic book) |
|
1421426552 (electronic book) |
|
9781421426549 |
|
1421426544 |
|
