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The life forms of a wetland system includes its plants and animals and microbes (bacteria, fungi). The most important factor is the wetland's duration of flooding. [1] Other important factors include fertility and salinity of the water or soils.
Wet meadows were once common in wetland types around the world. [4] [5] They remain an important community type in wet savannas and flatwoods. [6] The also survive along rivers and lakeshores where water levels are allowed to change within and among years. [7] But their area has been dramatically reduced.
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. Wetlands play a ...
Additionally, these plants provide a large habitat for many wetland species, a large number of which are endangered or threatened. Lastly, riparian plants shade the water from sunlight, reducing the heat stress on the water and aquatic life, while also providing nutrients in the form of organic matter. [6]
Derelict water-meadows are often of importance as wetland wildlife habitats. Water-meadows should not be confused with flood-meadows, which are naturally covered in shallow water by seasonal flooding from a river. "Water-meadow" is sometimes used more loosely to mean any level grassland beside a river.
Vernal pools, also called vernal ponds or ephemeral pools, are seasonal pools of water that provide habitat for distinctive plants and animals. They are considered to be a distinctive type of wetland usually devoid of fish, and thus allow the safe development of natal amphibian and insect species unable to withstand competition or predation by ...
A wetland (aerial view) Wetland conservation is aimed at protecting and preserving areas of land including marshes, swamps, bogs, and fens that are covered by water seasonally or permanently due to a variety of threats from both natural and anthropogenic hazards. Some examples of these hazards include habitat loss, pollution, and invasive species.
The Wetlands Geodatabase and the Wetlands Mapper, as an Internet discovery portal, provide technological tools that allow the integration of large relational databases with spatial information and map-like displays. The information is made available to an array of federal, state, tribal, and local governments and the public.