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Wetlands play a vital role in providing diverse and critical habitats for a wide array of plant and animal species, serving as a cornerstone of ecological diversity. Different species of fish and wildlife utilize wetlands in various ways. Some rely on wetlands as their main habitat, while others use them seasonally for food and shelter.
Many species of frogs live in wetlands, while others visit them each year to lay eggs. Snapping turtles are one of the many kinds of turtles found in wetlands. Many species of fish are highly dependent on wetland ecosystems. [44] [45] Seventy-five percent of the United States' commercial fish and shellfish stocks depend solely on estuaries to ...
A wetland is a land area that is saturated with water, either permanently or seasonally, such that it takes on the characteristics of a distinct ecosystem.The primary factor that distinguishes wetlands from other land forms or water bodies is the characteristic vegetation of aquatic plants, adapted to the unique hydric soil.
While many Obligate Wetland (OBL) species do occur in permanently or semi-permanently flooded wetlands, there are also a number of obligates that occur in and temporary or seasonally flooded wetlands. A few species are restricted entirely to these transient-type wetland environments. Plant species are general indicators of various degrees of ...
Coastal wetlands also reduce pollution from human waste, [41] [42] remove excess nutrients from the water column, [43] trap pollutants, [44] and sequester carbon. [45] Further, near-shore wetlands act as both essential nursery habitats and feeding grounds for game fish, supporting a diverse group of economically important species. [46] [47] [48 ...
Less airtime is given to the stark tally of the biodiversity crisis: The World Wildlife Fund recently estimated that the wildlife population of the planet has plummeted 73% since 1970. The ...
Threats to freshwater biodiversity include overexploitation, water pollution, flow modification, destruction or degradation of habitat, and invasion by exotic species. [7] Climate change is putting further pressure on these ecosystems because water temperatures have already increased by about 1 °C, and there have been significant declines in ...
Vegetation in a wet meadow usually includes a wide variety of herbaceous species including sedges, rushes, grasses and a wide diversity of other plant species. [1] A few of many possible examples include species of Rhexia , Parnassia , Lobelia , many species of wild orchids (e.g. Calopogon and Spiranthes ), and carnivorous plants such as ...