Wetlands Are Wonderful
Help Save Our Wetlands!!!
Wetlands are...
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- Filter and clean over 100 tons of water.
- Over 220 million acres of wetlands were thought to have existed in the lower 48 states.
- It is estimated that over 53% of wetlands present in the time of European settlement in the early 1600s have been lost for conterminous in the U.S.
Types of wetlands...
Marshes: Marshes are areas with shallow water that are mostly grassland. The amount of water can change with the seasons. Marshes have soil with low mineral content. Marshes are home to a variety of plants and animals.
Fen: A fen is a fresh water peat wetland covered mostly by grasses, sedges, reeds, and wildflower with high PH ground water.
Swamps: Swamps are low moving streams, rivers, or low isolated areas with low and deeper water than marshes. Swamp soil is poorly drained and water logged.
Wetland Animals
Reptiles like water snakes feeds on other animals that make wetlands their home.
Amphibians like frogs that feed and hide from the hard winter weather in the water.
Invertebrates live all or most of their time under water.
Wetland Plants
Plants that grow in swamps include trees and woody shrubs. In African swamps the main plant is papyrus.
Plants that grow in bogs and fens includes some species of carnivorous plants, evergreen trees and shrubs, and a floor covered by a thick carpet of moss.
Wetland destruction and ways to stop it!
We can fix this problem by picking up and throwing away trash, using non-toxic household and everyday use items, avoid wetlands if you are installing a new building.