Scientific Illustrations

 

Discover how art can deepen our understanding of the natural world with this series of scientific illustrations. Created through our Science Illustration Internship program in collaboration with scientists, this collection translates Chesapeake Bay and coastal research into visual stories. Select an image below to explore the corresponding gallery and download the illustrations.

Scientific Illustration Resources

Aquaculture in Action

An illustration of an aquaculture fish tank with students around it, as seen from above.
A poster that shows how an aquaculture system in the classroom works and its benefits for students and teachers.
An illustration of an aquaculture fish tank with students around it, as seen from above.

See how an aquaculture system in the classroom works and explore the benefits for students and teachers.

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Biofilms and Biodiversity

Amphipod, Tube Bryozoans, Colonial Hydroids, and Colonial Ciliates.
Amphipod, Tube Bryozoans, Colonial Hydroids, and Colonial Ciliates.
This illustration highlights the Amphipod
alt="This illustration highlights the Tube Bryozoan in the previous slide image. It shows about 32 tube shaped worms, some of which have a fan-like structure on one end."
Colonial Hydroids highlight in previous slide, showing 17 worm like creatures that has a spray of tendrils coming off the bulbous end.
Colonial Ciliate highlighted in the previous slide, showing 3 "sprays" of white lace-like structures.
Illustration of barnacle from video to show a detailed rendition of it's shell, body, and fan-like appendage.
This illustration highlights the stentors in the previous slide.
Several lilly-shaped Stentor
Illustration of a whip mud worm crawling over a lacy crust bryozoan
Whip Mud Worm (shaped similar to a centipede, with hundreds of appendages along both sides of its worm-shaped body) crawling over a wall like a honeycomb, but with square-shaped cells.
This illustration highlights the lacy crust bryozoan from the previous slide.
A wall like a honeycomb, but with square-shaped cells.
This illustration highlights the whip mud worm on the previous slide.
2 Whip Mud Worm peeking out of holes
Illustration of a freshwater sponge on a biofilm disc
white, creamy looking masses between warm-colored bio-mass on a bio-disk.
This illustration highlights freshwater sponge gemmules.
a mass of around 50 warm-colored spheres
This illustration highlights the freshwater sponge siphon.
A large, white orb with a circular opening
This illustration highlights the freshwater sponge mass.
white, creamy looking masses between warm-colored bio-mass on a bio-disk.
This illustration highlights the freshwater sponge spicules.
a zoom in illustration showing many rods amongst the Sponge Mass
Illustration of a biofilms disc with stentors, a whip mud worm, and a feeding barnacle
Barnacle feeding next to Stentor and Whip Mud Worms
Finger-like Tube Bryozoans

Discover common creatures found on biofilms in the Baltimore Harbor for the Biofilms and Biodiversity program.

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Cable Bacteria

Cross section of bay floor depicting strings of cable bacteria spanning from the deep in the soil to the soil surface
Cross section of bay floor depicting strings of cable bacteria spanning from the deep in the soil to the soil surface

Learn about cable bacteria—long, self-oxidizing microbes that can function as natural “extension cords” and stimulate activity of other microbes in deep aquatic sediments.

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Cyanobacteria

A poster depicting a dog sniffing in wetlands as well as text panels describing Cyanobacteria.
Underwater illustration of "Harmful Algal Mats in the Chesapeake Bay"
A poster depicting a dog sniffing Algal Mats in wetlands as well as text panels describing Cyanobacteria.

Learn about harmful algal mats in the Chesapeake Bay, including the scientific processes that form algal mats and how to protect your pets.

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Oyster Lifecycle at a Hatchery

A graphic of an oyster’s life cycle, from broodstock and spawning all the way to an oyster farm and your local market and restaurant.
A graphic of an oyster’s life cycle, from broodstock and spawning all the way to an oyster farm and your local market and restaurant.
A graphic of an oyster’s life cycle, from broodstock and spawning all the way to an oyster farm and your local market and restaurant.

Follow the life cycle of an oyster at Horn Point Oyster Hatchery, from broodstock and spawning tanks to oyster farms and local restaurants.

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Rain Gardens

A colorful poster explains the importance of rain garden practices in containing runoff, including rain barrels and native plants.
A colorful poster explains the importance of rain garden practices in containing runoff, including rain barrels and native plants.
A colorful poster explains the importance of rain garden practices in containing runoff, including rain barrels and native plants.

Discover how rain garden practices, including rain barrels and native plants, help contain stormwater runoff.

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Segmented Sills

A series of illustrations show vegetation and sediment interactions—accretion and erosion—in living shorelines that include gaps, or “sills.”
A series of illustrations show vegetation and sediment interactions—accretion.
A series of illustrations show vegetation and sediment interactions—erosion
Sill Field Guide Poster: 3 columns describing the benefits and drawbacks of creating sills (openings) in water rock barriers to wetlands on the water side.

A series of illustrations show vegetation and sediment interactions—accretion and erosion—in living shorelines that include gaps, or “sills.”

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Water Quality & Wastewater Infrastructure

An illustration created to demonstrate the importance of wastewater infrastructure in light of the catastrophic sewer pipe collapse that sent untreated human waste into the Potomac River.
An illustration created to demonstrate the importance of wastewater infrastructure in light of the catastrophic sewer pipe collapse that sent untreated human waste into the Potomac River.

Learn about the importance of wastewater infrastructure in light of a sewer pipe collapse that sent untreated human waste into the Potomac River.

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Program Announcements

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Video Gallery

Sea Grant Film Explores a Diminishing Smithville

Smithville is a community on Maryland’s Eastern Shore, on the edge of the Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge. A century ago, Smithville had more than 100 residents. Today, it has four, in two homes: an elderly couple, and one elderly woman and her son, who cares for her.

More Videos • Read Smithville Article

Featured Fellow

Nina Santos

Nina Santos is a Ph.D. student at the Chesapeake Biological Laboratory at the University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science. For her dissertation, she is focused on small shrimp-like crustaceans called mysids – an understudied yet important part of many estuarine and coastal food webs.
Read More About Nina Santos

The Blue Crab: Callinectes Sapidus

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