Photos of the Month: July

From fireworks and oyster plantings, to summer sunsets along the Chesapeake Bay and its rivers and streams, July was a magical month around the region! Take a look at some of the highlights below from us, our partners, and supporters!

Do you have a favorite Chesapeake photo you took this month that you'd like to submit to be featured as one of our Photos of the Month? Upload your digital photo here or tag us in your photo on your public Twitter or Instagram. We look forward to seeing your photos!

A kingfisher perches atop a bird house at Marshy Point Nature Center on along the Middle River in Maryland.

Linda McMaon

Twitter & Instagram Photos

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Storm clouds moving in made for some great lighting ! Wilson Point staring early to stay ahead of the rain. #fireworks #middleriver #fourthofjuly #usaprimeshot #sonya6000 #maryland #chesapeakebay | • •

A post shared by 📍Maryland 🇺🇸 (@lakyle_) on Jul 6, 2019 at 7:38pm PDT

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I’m forever capturing purple sunsets in Maryland. All my Washington state sunsets were pastel. It’s interesting how the sky varies - I like to think we all see the same sky, but I feel like it really does have a different personality, so to speak, in different places. Florida sunsets are deep golds and reds. New York is variegated colors. And Maryland blesses me with my favorite color, purple. Also, this moon is just a smidge from being full and she’s gorgeous, gorgeous, gorgeous. : : : : : #myfavoritecolor #purpleismyfavoritecolor #daniellewpress #moon🌙 #moonlight🌙 #themoon #purplesky #purpleskies #almostfullmoon #canon5dmarkiv #canon5d #teamcanon #canonfavpic #canonfanphoto #canonshooter #maryland #marylandphotographer #chesapeakebay #mdphotographer #mdinfocus #serene #peacefully #gorgeousness #natureisbeautiful #beautyinnature #landscapelover #annapolisphotographer

A post shared by Danielle (@danielle.w.press) on Jul 19, 2019 at 7:45pm PDT

Shout out to @chesapeakebay for bringing our #trgs2019 students 3 fun and engaging lessons! Ss dissected and learned about oysters and filter fish. Ss also learned about recycling oyster shells! #marinescience #deeperlearning @SufVAschools #spsk12proud @MariLueDav pic.twitter.com/FaHuae2GCC

— Megan Farabaugh (@megfara) July 16, 2019

"In the end we will conserve only what we love, we will love only what we understand, and we will understand only what we are taught.” #scienceleaders #mwee @mjmsuper @HCPSSElemSci @chesapeakebay pic.twitter.com/Gtj1SP2wzi

— Amy Parker (@AmyPark58114282) July 18, 2019

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Our Maryland Oyster Restoration Center received its first batch of oyster larvae last week! We normally start growing baby oysters—also known as spat—in April, but excessive rain lowered the salinity of the Bay, making it difficult for the oysters to grow. Salinity returned enough to receive oyster larvae from higher salinity areas like Oyster Seed Holdings in Virginia, then yesterday we set our other two tanks with larvae from the Maryland Department of Natural Resources hatchery in Piney Point. These baby oysters will seed sanctuary reefs in the Patapsco and Choptank rivers in the next two weeks! Fun fact: Once they reach adult size, they'll be able to filter up to 50 gallons (!!!) of water a day!

A post shared by Chesapeake Bay Foundation (@chesapeakebayfoundation) on Jul 19, 2019 at 7:36am PDT

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*pours old bay on everything* . . . . . . . . #mommyblogger #love #hbd #happybirthday #love #summer #vacation #parenthood #motherhood #motherhoodrising #mama #babiesdontkeep #motherhoodunplugged #babyboy #momlife #hellobaby #1yearold #12months #boymom #mama #flashesofdelight #thatsdarling #petitejoys #pursuepretty #vscocam #afterlight #artofvisuals

A post shared by Calle Cosentino (@callecosentino) on Jul 21, 2019 at 5:14am PDT

#UMD students recently spent an @UMDAB weekend at Clagett Farm with the @chesapeakebay learning about sustainable, community-based agriculture! #UMDinspires pic.twitter.com/pUnsjePcWo

— SustainableUMD (@SustainableUMD) July 25, 2019

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'One's trash is not another's treasure' Friendly reminder of where so much of our trash ends up. I'm sure this mama did not intentionally grab this piece of plastic but rather it was likely bound up in whatever sticks she and papa were using to build their nest. This may only be unsightly in this instance but single use plastic is an increasingly deadly threat to wildlife. Remember #REDUCE comes before #REUSE or #RECYCLE! Keep it clean people! #Pandionhaliaetus #Osprey #elite_raptors #canonusa #TeamCanon #gettheshot #lenscoat #manfrottoimaginemore #singleuseplastic #savethebay #chesapeakebay

A post shared by Michael Fahey (@fairfxmike) on Jul 26, 2019 at 6:01am PDT

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Female or Male Blue crab? (Callinectes sapidus) Here are some easy ways to tell the difference🦀 - Male Crabs (jimmies) have a narrow T-shaped "apron" on the bottom of their shell. While Female Crabs (sooks) have a wide "apron". - Also live females have red-tipped claws, while males are blue! - #videttiphgrapy #withGalaxy #savethebay

A post shared by Videtti Phgrapy🌿 (@phgraphy_iv) on Jul 25, 2019 at 12:50pm PDT

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Have you been catching lots of underwater grasses on your line recently? That's good news! According to a @ChesBayProgram report, despite record rainfall last year, the Bay’s underwater grass abundance remains strong and are showing their increasing resilience to such stresses—an indication that the Chesapeake Clean Water Blueprint is working! Why are grasses important in the Bay ecosystem? They keep our waters clean, offer food to small invertebrates and migratory waterfowl, and provide important habitat to fish and blue crabs. 📷: Octavio Aburto\iLCP

A post shared by Chesapeake Bay Foundation (@chesapeakebayfoundation) on Jul 27, 2019 at 8:46am PDT

CBF’s oyster planting vessel the Patricia Campbell is on its way to plant more than 2 million juvenile oysters outside of Baltimore. #ChesBay pic.twitter.com/UdnsUKME6c

— AJ Metcalf (@AJwatchMD) July 31, 2019