December 31, 2025 — Warming temperatures and changing rainfall patterns are changing the Chesapeake Bay.
New kinds of fish are venturing to the bay and long-established species face challenges as their bodies respond to warmer temperatures and changing salinity — salt and ion levels — in bay waters, recent studies show.
“We know climate is warming, and so are the waters of the bay, and we’ve seen this in our own time,” said Mary C. Fabrizio, a professor of natural resources at the Virginia Institute of Marine Science.
“We need to look at all the processes in the body of the fish that are affected by temperature, things like growth, things like reproduction and feeding behaviors.” She said these include: “When do fish migrate up river to spawn, or when do fish return to the bay to feed? And how do fish use the bay as a nursery area?”