Top Gulf Coast Beaches to Visit
There are various ways from which bays can be created. The largest bays have developed as a result of plate tectonics.
As the super-continent Pangaea broke up along curved and indented fault lines, the continents moved apart and the world's largest bays formed. These include the Gulf of Guinea, Gulf of Mexico and the Bay of Bengal, which is the largest bay in the world.
Another way bays form is via glacial and river erosion.
A bay formed by a glacier is a fjord. Rias are created by rivers and are characterised by more gradual slopes. Currents can make waves more constant, and soft rocks speed erosion. Hard rock eroded less quickly, leaving headlands. The Gulf of California is an example of a bay created by plate tectonics as Baja California peninsula moves away from the Mexican mainland.
