The Grand Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve is one of the most biologically productive estuarine ecosystems in the

Gulf of Mexico The Gulf of Mexico ( es, Golfo de México) is an ocean basin and a marginal sea of the Atlantic Ocean, largely surrounded by the North American continent. It is bounded on the northeast, north and northwest by the Gulf Coast of the United ...

region, supporting several rare or endangered plant and animal

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...

, numerous important marine fishery resources, diverse habitat types and archaeological sites, in the

U.S. State In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sove ...

Mississippi Mississippi () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States, bordered to the north by Tennessee; to the east by Alabama; to the south by the Gulf of Mexico; to the southwest by Louisiana; and to the northwest by Arkansas. Miss ...

. The reserve encompasses coastal bay, expansive saltwater marshes, maritime

pine A pine is any conifer tree or shrub in the genus ''Pinus'' () of the family Pinaceae. ''Pinus'' is the sole genus in the subfamily Pinoideae. The World Flora Online created by the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew and Missouri Botanical Garden accepts ...

forest A forest is an area of land dominated by trees. Hundreds of definitions of forest are used throughout the world, incorporating factors such as tree density, tree height, land use, legal standing, and ecological function. The United Nations' ...

, pine

savanna A savanna or savannah is a mixed woodland- grassland (i.e. grassy woodland) ecosystem characterised by the trees being sufficiently widely spaced so that the canopy does not close. The open canopy allows sufficient light to reach the ground to ...

and

pitcher plant Pitcher plants are several different carnivorous plants which have modified leaves known as pitfall traps—a prey-trapping mechanism featuring a deep cavity filled with digestive liquid. The traps of what are considered to be "true" pitcher p ...

bogs. It supports extensive and productive oyster

reef A reef is a ridge or shoal of rock, coral or similar relatively stable material, lying beneath the surface of a natural body of water. Many reefs result from natural, abiotic processes— deposition of sand, wave erosion planing down rock o ...

s and

seagrass Seagrasses are the only flowering plants which grow in marine environments. There are about 60 species of fully marine seagrasses which belong to four families (Posidoniaceae, Zosteraceae, Hydrocharitaceae and Cymodoceaceae), all in the or ...

habitats. It also serves as nursery area for many of the Gulf of Mexico's important recreational and commercial marine species, such as shrimp,

blue crab Blue crab may refer to: * Blue Crab 11, an American sailboat design * ''Callinectes sapidus'' – Chesapeake or Atlantic blue crab of the West Atlantic, introduced elsewhere * '' Cardisoma guanhumi'' – blue land crab of the West Atlantic * '' Dis ...

, speckled trout, and red fish. As part of the Grand Bay Savannah Conservation Partnership, the Grand Bay Reserve is participating in a prescribed burn management program for the East Mississippi Sound Region. This project is widely supported by local and state government agencies as well as the oil and gas industry with facilities in adjacent fire-dependent woodlands. The Grand Bay Coastal Resources Center Interpretative Area is the headquarters for the Reserve and the Grand Bay National Wildlife Refuge. Completed in 2009, the Center features interpretive exhibits, classrooms, laboratories and a dormitory. Environmental education programs for and special events are offered. Visitor activities include hiking, boating, paddling, photography, fishing and hunting.

References

Grand Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve

External links

Grand Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve
- official site Protected areas of Mississippi National Estuarine Research Reserves of the United States Nature centers in Mississippi Estuaries of Mississippi Landforms of Jackson County, Mississippi {{Mississippi-stub