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Espiritu Santo Bay

Overview

The Espiritu Santo Bay, named by early Spaniard discoverers, translates to “Holy Spirit.” This bay is located between the San Antonio Bay and Matagorda Bay in the southern region of Calhoun County.

Texas's Ecoregions

Ecology

The bay runs sixteen miles long, and five miles wide, creating a barrier between the mainland of the Texas coastline and Matagorda Island. The Espiritu Santo Bay is located at 28°21' N, 96°32' W. It has a variety of different characteristics that make it incredibly important to the uniqueness of Texas’ environment. One distinguishing characteristic of the bay is that the low ridges that surround it have several types of grass and oak trees that cover these ridges. Another characteristic that makes Espiritu Santo Bay stand out is that in the shallow waters, many species and environmental conditions are different than other bodies of water nearby. One environmental condition that separates this bay from other bodies of water is the safe and healthy water, free of red tides and harmful algal blooms. Espiritu Santo Bay’s waters provide a diverse ecosystem and nursery area for marine and terrestrial species. For example, Espiritu Santo Bay is home to oyster reefs and tidal flats of mixed substances, such as mud, sand and shell. This area is normally where blue green algae can be found. Espiritu Santo Bay also provides home to many frequent visitors such as whooping cranes, which are endangered species that are known to migrate to and from the bay.

A Frequent Visitor: The Whooping Crane

Human Use

Espiritu Santo Bay has long been used for human activity due to its location and size. In addition to having a lot of characteristics that distinguish it from other Bays in the area, the Espiritu Santo Bay offers great harvesting benefits and conditions to local people of this area. One major characteristic that distinguishes the Bay from others in the area is it’s proper and healthy conditions of it’s water which is used for harvesting of Molluscan shellfish. Molluscan shellfish are defined as oysters, clams and mussels, and the bay’s healthy conditions allows for lots of fishing, hunting, and sightseeing for both recreational and commercial fishermen. In Texas’s waters, all shellfish harvesting must be from an approved or conditionally approved area; however, the ability to harvest in Texas’s estuaries can be changed by the Texas Department of State Health Services. The reason for this potential change may be caused by high rainfall and runoff, flooding, hurricanes and other extreme environmental conditions. As of 2012, the bay has been open for the use of oyster harvesting and other molluscan shellfish. Additionally, the Espiritu Santo Bay has become a prime location for harvesting, as these waters are approved or conditionally approved areas by the local Texas Parks and Wildlife Department office.

Oyster Shells on the Beach: A type of Molluscan Shellfish