What makes the Chesapeake region so special? Ask any number of Bay lovers and chances are you will hear similar answers: the effortless glide of a “beautiful swimmer” blue crab, the laser-focused dive of an osprey looking for menhaden, the salty sweetness of a Chesapeake oyster, a rewarding day fishing for stripers on the Bay or brook trout in clear, cold mountain streams. From time immemorial, nature and its creatures have fascinated, connected, rejuvenated us. And so, it is no surprise that all of our top stories of 2024 have something to do with the Bay’s extraordinary wildlife—striped bass, blue crabs, brook trout, dolphins, blue catfish, and more. Our watershed is a remarkable place made even more remarkable by the over 3,600 species of plants and animals that call it home. In this season of reflection, join us as we take a look back at the top stories of 2024 below.
Juvenile striped bass, which stay in the Chesapeake Bay year-round, may endure low oxygen levels in summer dead zones.
Steve Droter/Chesapeake Bay Program
Saving Striped Bass
Signs increasingly indicate trouble for striped bass, one of the most revered fish in the Chesapeake Bay and along the Atlantic Coast. In this in-depth series, we examine how a potent mix of fishing pressure, invasive predators, changing climate and habitat conditions, and disease is impacting the population—and what can be done to help.
A prized blue crab near Port Isobel Island, Virginia.
Morgan Jones/CBF Staff
Bonjour Blue Crabs
Concerns remain about the overall decline in blue crabs after the annual survey of the population in the Chesapeake Bay and its tributaries was released late last month. But while the survey showed numbers remain low here, this iconic Bay species is showing up in wildly unexpected places across the globe—including France, Croatia, and Maine.
Brook trout like this one are being reintroduced to West Virginia waterways.
Lisa Caruso/CBF Staff
Bringing Back Brook Trout
In a multi-part story, we explored how brook trout conservation efforts in West Virginia’s Eastern Panhandle are helping restore the Potomac River and the Chesapeake Bay. Much of the funding and resources for this critical work are only made possible through the landmark 40-year Bay partnership to reduce pollution and restore habitats across our remarkable watershed.
Peter Sengenberger
Year of the Nature Zen
No doubt there were some tumultuous times in 2024, and often the best way to soothe one’s nerves and angst was to return to nature. Unsurprisingly, on Instagram our top-performing videos featured dolphins leaping through Bay waves, goslings jumping from their nest outside CBF’s Philip Merrill Environmental Center, rivers running wild in the headwaters of Pennsylvania, and blue crabs scampering through underwater grasses.CBF report outlines what's needed in the next chapter of oyster restoration to improve water quality and fish habitat, increase climate resilience, and grow economic opportunities in the Bay's coastal communities.
Pennsylvania Fish & Boat Commission Fish Culturist Andy Severns prepares to stock blue catfish fingerlings into the Ohio River near Point State Park in Pittsburgh.
Pennsylvania Fish & Boat Commission
Blue Catfish Conundrum
Invasive blue catfish, an opportunistic predator, continue to eat the Chesapeake Bay alive—feeding on valuable species like menhaden, striped bass, eel, shad, river herring, and blue crabs. But in western Pennsylvania, where blue catfish are native to the Ohio River Basin, the fish are seen as a prized opportunity for anglers, and reintroduction plans are underway.
Low tide reveals a healthy oyster reef in Bavon, Virginia.
Robert Diller
Hope on the Half Shell
The Chesapeake Bay is now home to the world's largest oyster reef restoration projects—and they're showing incredible success. What comes next? A new CBF report outlines what's needed in the next chapter of oyster restoration to improve water quality and fish habitat, increase climate resilience, and grow economic opportunities in the Bay's coastal communities.
In the News
- Striped Bass’ future remains uncertain: Despite troubling signs for the striper population, the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC)’s Striped Bass Management Board did not vote for additional protection for this iconic fish in the 2025 fishing season.
- CBS 60 Minutes spotlights Smith Island, Chesapeake Bay sea level rise challenges: Correspondent Jon Wertheim interviews CBF President Hilary Harp Falk.
- Chesapeake Executive Council charts course for Bay restoration’s next phase: The Bay effort must also confront mounting challenges from climate change, population growth, and development.
- House votes overwhelmingly to extend Chesapeake Bay restoration programs: With the 2025 deadline fast approaching and a new presidential administration about to take office, the Bay restoration effort is at a critical juncture.
- CBF will fight preliminary permit granted for proposed York County, PA hydroelectric facility: Cuffs Run proposal would destroy a phenomenal natural area.
- New Maryland transmission line would disrupt hundreds of acres of forests and wetlands: Piedmont Reliability Project must properly mitigate threats to habitat and water quality.
- Virginia oyster gardening nears record during Virginia Oyster Month: Volunteers returned more than 110,000 water-filtering oysters to the Bay and its rivers in 2024.
- Maryland must revise Valley Proteins Wastewater Permit, court decides: This decision is a huge win for clean water and the Chesapeake Bay.
- Keystone 10 Million Trees Partnership adds 130,000 new trees for Pennsylvania: Trees, especially when planted as riparian buffers, are the most cost-effective tools for cleaning and protecting waterways.
What You Can Do
- As the foundation of the Chesapeake Bay ecosystem, menhaden serve as important food for striped bass, osprey, and other iconic Bay creatures. But they face intense pressure from one industrial fishing behemoth named Omega Protein, a subsidiary of international conglomerate Cooke, Inc. Stand with CBF and countless others in protecting this critical fish!
- Thanks to you, we saw some incredible things for the Bay and clean water in 2024! Take a look at what we were able to accomplish with you by our side.
- Just in time for the holidays, grass-fed lamb from CBF's Clagett Farm is available for purchase! And be sure to shop the Farm Store for select beef cuts and honey from our 2024 season while supplies last.
- Match Alert: Now through December 31, your gift to save the Bay is worth DOUBLE. Give today to have your donation matched dollar-for-dollar by CBF's Board of Trustees.
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