HYDROGRAPHY OF THE MARINE WATERS 5 



Currituck Sound, the northernmost of the twelve named sounds in the 

 State, is about 40 miles long,^ 3 to 4 miles wide, and less than 7 feet" deep 

 over most of the area. It is essentially a lagoon and drains the bordering 

 swamps and lowlands. It opens into the eastern end of Albemarle Sound to 

 the south, and Inland Waterway canals link it with Norfolk to the north and 

 the North River tributary of Albemarle Sound to the southwest. Its mouth is 

 about 24 miles from Oregon Inlet, the nearest opening to the ocean; con- 

 sequently its waters are fresh to brackish and are notable for supporting 

 water fowl, freshwater game fish and such migrants to fresh water as striped 

 bass and alewives. 



Albemarle Sound has an east-west dimension of about 55 miles, averages 

 about 7 miles wide, and has a rather level bottom about 18 feet deep. Eight 

 rivers, including the Roanoke and the Chowan, and Currituck Sound drain 

 into this body of water which in turn drains through Croatan and Roanoke 

 sounds and into the upper part of Pamlico Sound. Inland Waterway canals 

 connect with Currituck Sound to the northeast, with the lower Chesapeake 

 Bay at Norfolk by way of the Pasquotank River and the Dismal Swamp, and 

 with Pamlico Sound to the south by way of the Alligator River. Since Albe- 

 marle Sound has such a large river drainage and the exchange with sea water 

 is about as indirect as it is for Currituck Sound, it is essentially fresh water. 

 As such it has proved to be an exceptionally favorable habitat for anadromous 

 fishes (those that seek fresh water to spawn), which may spawn in the sound 

 proper or in its tributaries. The resulting fish migrations and the shallow, 

 level bottom suitable for staking nets form the basis for the intensive fishery 

 of the area. 



Roanoke and Croatan sounds parallel each other and extend south from 

 eastern Albemarle into northeastern Pamlico Sound. Roanoke Sound, just 

 west of the offshore bar, is about 8 miles long and ^ to 2 miles wide, and 

 has a depth of only i to 3 feet over most of its area. West of Roanoke Island, 

 which separates these two bodies of water, is Croatan Sound. This is also 

 about 8 miles long but is 2 to 4 miles wide and generally 7 to 10 feet deep. 

 Undoubtedly it is the more important in the circulation and drainage from 

 Albemarle to Pamlico Sound. Accordingly, its fisheries potentialities as a 

 bottle-neck for anadromous fishes entering Albemarle Sound are probably 

 greater than those of Roanoke Sound; however, because of its higher fresh- 

 water circulation it has not been as productive of oysters. 



Pamlico Sound is approximately 70 miles in its long northeast-southwest 

 dimension and varies from 10 to 30 miles in width. In the basins the bottom 



1. This includes Back Bay, a branch of the sound north of the Virginia line. 



2. The depths listed here and elsewhere in this section are characteristic depths, no considera- 

 tion being given to narrow channels, especially those man-made ones that do not alter the basic 

 physiography. 



