[英語學習Plus] Chesapeake Bay 契沙比克灣

Chesapeake Bay is a beautiful place where the water meets the land. It is located in the eastern United States. It is a large bay surrounded by Maryland, Virginia, and the Atlantic Ocean. People come from all over to sail, fish, and sightsee there.

But the bay is more than a great vacation spot. It is also home to some of the most famous coastal wetlands in the world. The long, ragged coast of the Chesapeake Bay is perfect for wetlands. Fingers of water push inland from the bay. They constantly feed the wetlands and the animals and plants living there.

There are many plant and animal habitats in the Chesapeake Bay. One of the largest habitats is the wetlands. In wetlands, plants and animals live both above and below the water. There are different kinds of wetlands. Some have mainly trees with a few bushes. Others have mainly grasses and bushes with a few trees. Chesapeake Bay has both kinds of wetlands.

What makes an area a wetland? There are some key features. The first is, of course, the water. Wetlands have shallow water. The freshwater wetlands of the Chesapeake Bay are just a few feet deep.

The tidal wetlands can be shallow or deep. This depends on the tides. Wetlands are home to certain kinds of plant life. The plants are able to live in water and wet soils all year long. When the plants and trees die, they fall into the water and begin to decay. Animals, insects, and bacteria use the decaying material for food.

The animals of the wetlands also are able to live in the conditions there. Their bodies help them move and live in the water.

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位於美國東部海陸交會之處的契沙比克灣是個風景秀麗的地方。這個大海灣的四面環繞著馬里蘭州、維吉尼亞州與大西洋。四方的旅客前來此地揚帆、垂釣和觀光。

這座海灣不僅是絕佳的觀光度假勝地，還是世界最負盛名的濱海溼地之一。契沙比克灣的海岸線長而崎嶇，極易形成溼地。河流的支流在內陸延伸，這些支流不斷地灌溉溼地、餵養在那裡生活的動植物。

契沙比克灣是許多動植物的棲息地，其中腹地最廣的就是溼地。在溼地，不論水面上或水面下都可找到動植物的蹤跡。溼地也分不同的類型，有些溼地大多數是樹木，只有少數是灌木叢；有些溼地則大多是草地與灌木叢，只有少量的樹木，而契沙比克灣的溼地則兩者皆具。

什麼樣的條件才能讓一塊地變成溼地呢？溼地有一些關鍵特色。當然，第一個特色是水。溼地上有淺水，而契沙比克灣的淡水溼地只有幾英呎深。潮間溼地有淺有深，取決於潮汐的大小。

溼地是一些植物的大本營，這類植物終年生長在在水中或潮溼的土壤裡。一旦植物或樹木凋謝枯死便掉到水中，開始腐化。濕地的動物、昆蟲、細菌便以這些腐爛的物質為食物。

溼地上的動物也能夠在這樣的環境條件下生存，牠們的身體構造有助於其在水裡活動與生活。