Wetland Ecosystems

Wetland Ecosystems — page 3 — In some wetlands such as the Okefenokee Swamp water covers most of the ground year-round 6

Wetland Ecosystems — page 4 — Okefenokee Swamp The Okefenokee Swamp is one of the largest freshwater swamps in the world It covers 438,000 acres 177,000 ha of land in southeast Georgia and northwest Florida The swamp’s name comes from the Creek tribe of Native Americans It means land of the trembling earth This is because walking on the swamp’s soft ground often causes nearby bushes and shrubs to shake The waters of the Okefenokee Swamp are brown The color comes from tannic acid that is released as plants decay 7 croaking of the tree frogs A turtle sunning on a log dives into the dark water with a splash Properties of a Wetland Water is present in all ecosystems But it plays a unique role in wetland ecosystems Swamps such as the Okefenokee are one type of wetland Marshes bogs and fens are also types of wetlands So what makes a wet area a wetland All wetlands share similar water soil and plant characteristics Wetlands have hydric soils This means the soil does not get much oxygen because there is too

Wetland Ecosystems — page 5 — Many species of duck depend on wetlands to nest find food and migrate much water Without much oxygen dead plant material decays very slowly So wetland soils contain large amounts of partially decayed plant matter This collects over thousands of years Wetland soils sometimes smell like rotten eggs The smell comes from a gas that is produced by bacteria in the plant rich soil 8

Wetland Ecosystems — page 6 — Wetland plants are called hydrophytes These water-loving plants have adapted to grow with little or no oxygen from the soil Approximately 5,000 different wetland plants grow in the United States Many birds fish amphibians reptiles and mammals also live in wetlands Humans rely on wetlands to store and clean water Wetlands are unique ecosystems that need protecting EXPLORE ONLINE Chapter One discusses what wetlands are and how to identify them The website below also discusses the definition of wetlands As you know every source is different How is the information on the website different from the information in this chapter Which information is the same How do the two sources present information differently What can you learn from this website Identifying Wetlands mycorelibrary com wetland-ecosystems 9

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