The South Shore Estuary is an

estuary An estuary is a partially enclosed coastal body of brackish water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea. Estuaries form a transition zone between river environments and maritime environm ...

located along the south shore of Long Island, between the mainland and the

outer barrier islands The Outer Barrier, also known as the Long Island and New York City barrier islands, refers to the string of barrier islands that divide the lagoons south of Long Island, New York from the Atlantic Ocean. These islands include Long Beach Barrier ...

, in eastern New York state. It stretches for over from West Bay in Nassau County to the Shinnecock Bay in Suffolk County. South Shore Estuary Access Guide
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Geography

The South Shore Estuary includes a series of interconnected bays, rivers, streams,

wetland A wetland is a distinct ecosystem that is flooded or saturated by water, either permanently (for years or decades) or seasonally (for weeks or months). Flooding results in oxygen-free (anoxic) processes prevailing, especially in the soils. The p ...

s and small islands located along Long Island's south shore between the mainland and the barrier islands.

Reynolds Channel Reynolds Channel is a strait in Nassau County, New York that separates Long Beach Barrier Island, which contains the City of Long Beach and the villages of Atlantic Beach, Lido Beach, and Point Lookout, from Long Island, Barnum Island, Har ...

, West Bay, Middle Bay, East Bay,

South Oyster Bay South Oyster Bay or East Bay is a lagoon

Great South Bay The Great South Bay is a lagoon situated between Long Island and Fire Island, in the State of New York. It is about long and has an average depth of 4 feet 3 inches and is 20 feet at its deepest. It is protected from the Atlantic Ocean by Fire ...

Patchogue Bay Patchogue Bay is a lagoon on the south-central shores of Long Island in the U.S. state of New York. Part of the Great South Bay, Patchogue Bay is a cove between the points of land known as Blue Point and Howells Point, and across which ferrie ...

Moriches Bay Moriches Bay ( ) is a lagoon system on the south shore of Long Island, New York. The name Moriches comes from Meritces, a Native American who owned land on Moriches Neck. Two townships in Suffolk, New York ( Brookhaven and the Southampton) shar ...

and

Shinnecock Bay Shinnecock Inlet is the easternmost of five major inlets connecting bays to the Atlantic Ocean through the narrow Outer Barrier that stretches from New York City to Southampton, New York on the south shore of Long Island. It splits Westhampton Is ...

are part of this natural system, and familiar places to many.

Ecology

Estuaries are transition zones between the world's freshwater and

marine ecosystem Marine ecosystems are the largest of Earth's aquatic ecosystems and exist in waters that have a high salt content. These systems contrast with freshwater ecosystems, which have a lower salt content. Marine waters cover more than 70% of the sur ...

s where fresh water mixes with salt water. Long Island's South Shore estuary is a dynamic

ecosystem An ecosystem (or ecological system) consists of all the organisms and the physical environment with which they interact. These biotic and abiotic components are linked together through nutrient cycles and energy flows. Energy enters the syste ...

, formed during the past 5,000 years by the interaction of a rising sea level with the glacially-deposited material that makes up Long Island. In this estuarine environment, tidal

marshes A marsh is a wetland that is dominated by herbaceous rather than woody plant species.Keddy, P.A. 2010. Wetland Ecology: Principles and Conservation (2nd edition). Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK. 497 p Marshes can often be found at ...

, mud and sand flats, underwater plant beds and broad shallows support microscopic plants and animals which, in turn, support the finfish, shellfish, waterfowl and other wildlife that typify the South Shore estuary. The entire natural system, including the New York barrier islands and the of shallow bays behind them, is still changing and evolving in response to wave action, tides, coastal storms, and the continuing rise of sea level.

References

{{Reflist Estuaries of New York (state) Wetlands of New York (state) Nature reserves in New York (state) Landforms of Suffolk County, New York Bodies of water of Suffolk County, New York