Waquoit Bay Reserve, Massachusetts

Tidal Range

The morphology of Waquoit Bay is like that of other New England coastal bays, which typically feature asymmetric shaped bays, fringing marshes, fronting barrier spits or beaches and inlets. The amount of water that enters and exits the bay is determined by the magnitude of the tides as well as by the morphology of the Bay and its inlets. Tidal range of Waquoit bay is about 0.6 meters.

River Flow

As a Cape Cod embayment, Waquoit Bay is unusual in that it is fed by two sizable rivers - the Childs and Quashnet - entering Eel Pond and Waquoit Bay, respectively. Fifty percent of the freshwater entering Waquoit Bay comes from these rivers. Groundwater is another major contributor of freshwater to Waquoit Bay. The rivers themselves are groundwater fed; groundwater enters the rivers through the sediments and through springs in embankments along the flood plain.

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