Everything about Tampa Bay totally explained
Tampa Bay is a large natural
harbor and
estuary along the
Gulf of Mexico on the western coast of
Florida, comprising Old Tampa Bay, Hillsborough Bay, McKay Bay, and New Tampa Bay.
Geography and Ecology
Tampa Bay is Florida's largest open-water estuary, extending over 1031 square km. and forming coastlines of
Hillsborough,
Manatee and
Pinellas counties. The freshwater sources of the Bay are distributed among over a hundred small tributaries, rather than a single river.
Beginning the reversal of decades of unrestricted pollution, the bay was designated an estuary of national significance by the
United States Environmental Protection Agency, for its fringe of
mangrove and its prolific mud flats: more than 200 species of fish are to be found in Tampa Bay and 25 species of birds make it their year-round home. The warm water outfalls of power plants bordering the bay draw one out of every six endangered
manatees to spend the winter. Equally significant though less immediately visible is the role of the Bay's waters as nurseries for
shrimp and crabs, as well as less commercial invertebrates.
Two
National Wildlife Refuges are located in Tampa Bay:
Pinellas National Wildlife Refuge and the refuge on
Egmont Key. Most of the smaller islands in the Bay are off-limits to the public, due to their fragile ecology and their use as nesting sites for
brown pelicans,
herons,
egrets,
Roseate spoonbills,
cormorants and others. The
Tampa Bay Estuary Program keeps watch over the Bay's health.
Transportation
Due in large part to the
Port of Tampa and the dredging of more than eighty miles of deep-water shipping channels, seaborne commerce has historically been a large part of the
Tampa Bay Area’s economy. The area boasts the largest port in
Florida and the 10th largest in the nation – the
Port of Tampa. The port accommodates half of Florida’s
cargo in the form of bulk, break bulk,
roll-on/roll-off, refrigerated and container cargo. The port also has a large ship repair and building industry, and recently expanded cruise facilities.
The Port of Manatee, with more refrigerated dockside space than any other
Gulf of Mexico port, is the closest of the three Tampa Bay deepwater ports to the
Panama Canal. It is also one of the state's busiest, ranking fifth among Florida's fourteen seaports in total annual cargo tonnage.
The Port of St. Petersburg is home to a
U.S. Coast Guard station. The smallest of Florida’s ports, it operates as a landlord port managed by the city of
St. Petersburg.
Bridges that cross Tampa Bay
Further Information
Get more info on 'Tampa Bay'.
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