Designations
Ramsar Wetland
Official name	Chignecto
Designated	16 October 1985
Reference no.	320^[1]

Chignecto Bay (French: Baie de Chignectou) is an inlet of the Bay of Fundy located between the Canadian provinces of New Brunswick and Nova Scotia and separated from the waters of the Northumberland Strait by the Isthmus of Chignecto. It is a unit within the greater Gulf of Maine Watershed. Chignecto Bay forms the northeastern part of the Bay of Fundy which splits at Cape Chignecto and is delineated on the New Brunswick side by Martin Head. Chignecto Bay is a Ramsar site.

Chignecto bay was also the site of an unsuccessful railway and canal project of the 1880s and 1890s that would have intersected the landmass, thereby providing a transit passage between New England and Prince Edward Island. After several investigations into the feasibility of a new canal project, including most importantly by the Chignecto Canal Commission, the proposed Chignecto Canal was deemed commercially and economically unjustifiable and the project was abandoned.^[2] Some of the physical remnants of the 1880s project still continue to dot the landscape of Chignecto Bay today.

Chignecto Bay is derived from the Amerindian sigunikt, said to mean "foot cloth", possibly alluding to a Micmac legend.^[3]

Hydrography

At its head, Chignecto Bay itself subdivides into two basins, separated by Cape Maringouin:

Cumberland Basin - the northeast arm of Chignecto Bay (and the Bay of Fundy) between the two provinces, terminating at the Tantramar Marshes and the estuaries of the Tantramar River and Maccan River.
Shepody Bay - the north arm of Chignecto Bay and is wholly within New Brunswick. Its northern limit is formed at the estuaries of the Petitcodiac and Memramcook Rivers.

Many small named bays line the Bay's coast including Salisbury Bay at the mouths of the Upper Salmon River and Cleveland Brook, site of the Village of Alma, NB.

Chignecto Bay is a northern extension of a rift valley that forms much of the Bay of Fundy.

Toponymy

The name "Chignecto" derives from the Mi'kmaq name Siknikt, meaning "drainage place", the name of the Mi'kmaq District in which the bay is located.

Shorebird wildlife areas

The head of Cumberland Basin is an important migrating area for many shorebirds. A large portion of it is protected as a wildlife sanctuary known as the Chignecto National Wildlife Area. It includes the 10.2 km² John Lusby National Wildlife Area, which is recognized as a Ramsar Wetland of International Importance since October 1985.

References

^ "Chignecto". Ramsar Sites Information Service. Retrieved 25 April 2018.
^ "Report of the Chignecto Canal Commission" (PDF). Government of Canada Publications. Government of Canada. Retrieved 25 December 2017.
^ Hamilton, William (1978). The Macmillan Book of Canadian Place Names. Toronto: Macmillan. p. 73. ISBN 0-7715-9754-1.

Ramsar sites in Canada

Gulf of Maine estuaries

Maine

Bays	Blue Hill Bay Casco Bay Chandler Bay Dennys Bay Englishman Bay Frenchman Bay Harrington Bay Machias Bay Maquoit Bay Merrymeeting Bay Muscongus Bay Narraguagus Bay Passamaquoddy Bay Penobscot Bay Pleasant Bay Saco Bay Wohoa Bay
River mouths	Batson River Benjamin River Cape Neddick River Damariscotta River Johns River Jordan River Josias River Kennebunk River Little River (Boothbay) Little River (Drakes Island) Little River (Georgetown) Little River (Goosefare Bay) Little River (York) Morse River Mousam River Ogunquit River Pemaquid River Piscataqua River Sheepscot River Sprague River Webhannet River York River

Massachusetts

Bays	Cape Cod Bay Massachusetts Bay
River mouths	Annisquam River Eagle Hill River Egypt River Ipswich River Jericho Creek Merrimack River Roger Island River Rowley River Skug River

New Brunswick

Bays	Bay of Fundy Chignecto Bay Cumberland Basin Passamaquoddy Bay Shepody Bay
River mouths	Big Salmon River Quiddy River Saint John River

New Hampshire

River mouths	Blackwater River Hampton River Piscataqua River

Nova Scotia

Bays	Bay of Fundy Annapolis Basin Cobequid Bay Cumberland Basin Minas Basin St. Marys Bay
River mouths	Tusket River

Rivers of New Brunswick by drainage system

Bay of Fundy

Cumberland Basin	Missaguash River
Chignecto Bay	Upper Salmon River
Passamaquoddy Bay	Magaguadavic River St. Croix River
Watershed of Saint John River	Aroostook River Becaguimec Stream Canaan River Hammond River Iroquois River Jemseg River Kennebecasis River Keswick River Little Iroquois River Madawaska River Meduxnekeag River Nashwaak River Nerepis River North Branch Meduxnekeag River Oromocto River River De Chute Saint Francis River Saint John River Tobique River Wolastoq
Shepody Bay (watershed of Petitcodiac River)	Jonathan Creek Memramcook River Petitcodiac River Turtle Creek
Others	Big Salmon River Quiddy River

Gulf of
Saint Lawrence

Chaleur Bay (watershed of Restigouche River)	Belle Kedgwick River Gounamitz River Kedgwick River Little Main Restigouche River Little Southeast Upsalquitch River North Branch Gounamitz River Northwest Upsalquitch River Patapédia River Popelogan River Restigouche River South Branch Kedgwick River Southeast Upsalquitch River Upsalquitch River West Branch Gounamitz River
Miramichi Bay (watershed of Miramichi River)	Barnaby River Bartholomew River Bartibog River Cains River Dungarvon River Little Southwest Miramichi River Miramichi River Napan River North Pole Stream Northwest Miramichi River Oyster River Renous River Sevogle River Southwest Miramichi River Tuadook River
Northumberland Strait	Buctouche River Kouchibouguac River Kouchibouguacis River Molus River Richibucto River
Watershed of Saint Lawrence River	Rimouski River
Others	Black River Caraquet River Nepisiguit River Pokemouche River Rivière du Nord

45°40′N 64°40′W / 45.667°N 64.667°W / 45.667; -64.667