For more than 20 years, every February 2, the World Wetlands Day. This is intended to raise the population of the need and obligation we have to keep these precious ecosystems. Each year, a different motto accompanies the day of the wetland, thus highlighting the importance of wetlands for our future in sustainable media (2016), wetlands and water management (2013) or wetlands, biodiversity and climate change (2010), among other slogans. Source of innumerable natural wealth, wetlands appear in places as remote as the Margarita Island of Venezuela, or the Valley of Los Lagos on the border between Mongolia, China and Russia; as well as on the island with the largest mountain relief in the Mediterranean (Corsica) and the Sierra Leone River estuary.
Do not miss this interesting ecology article in which you will discover everything about What are wetlands, their types and characteristics.
What are wetlands
Wetlands are all those ecosystems whose soils appear permanent or periodically floodedboth in fresh water environments and in those that present a certain degree of salinity.
In this way, in the wetland ecosystems both include both Natural wetlandssuch as the extensive marshes, swamps and peatars, as well as those Anthropic wetlands that were designed by the human being and that artificially retain water, both permanently and temporarily, adapting to environmental conditions.
In the next sections we will see in more detail the different types of wetlands that exist as well as the main characteristics of these ecosystems of great natural wealth.
Types of wetlands
The wetlands are classified, first of all, depending on the type of water of which they are composed, thus existing fresh water wetlands and salty or salubres wetlands. In turn, wetlands can be natural or artificial (created by human being). In this way, the different types of wetlands that exist are included in the following groups:
- River or riverside wetlands: They are natural and sweetacuícoles, formed by rivers, streams and waterfalls.
- Lacustres: Lakes and natural freshwater lagoons.
- Tropical Palustres: Includes springs, oasis, swampy forests, flood jungles, permanent or seasonal swamps and swamps. All of them of natural and fresh water.
- Marine wetlands: These natural saltwater wetlands include any environment of shallow marine waters, as well as rocky, sand and gravel beaches.
- Estuaries: Salad waters of natural origin sometimes form salt water swamps and mangrove areas. Here you can read about the estuaries: characteristics, types, flora and fauna.
- Lacustrine wetlands/salt water palustrres: Includes coastal lakes and lagoons of natural origin.
- Artificial wetlands: These wetlands are the result of anthropic works carried out with the objective of storing or controlling a certain volume of water, such as reservoirs and dams.
Characteristics of wetlands
These are the Main characteristics of wetlands:
- Wetlands are considered areas of transition or progressive change between aquatic and land systems, that is, Mixed ecosystems. Here you can learn more about what a mixed ecosystem is.
- They constitute flooding areas so that they can be temporary or permanent.
- The waters of the wetlands can be stagnant waters, currents, fresh water, brackish or salty, including those marine areas whose depth in low tide is less than six meters.
- The limit of any wetland is determined by the type of Hydrophilic vegetation (With good predisposition to water) that appears in the field, so that by changing the type of vegetation to another non -hydrophilic, we can distinguish how the wetland ecosystem ends and begins another exclusively terrestrial environment ecosystem.
- Wetlands are the ideal habitat for a wide variety of speciesamong which are the migratory birds that reach wetlands around the world to feed, as well as mammals, amphibians, reptiles, and of course, fish and insects, which choose the waters of wetlands as a refuge.
Importance of wetlands
The wetlands are one of the most important ecosystems within the proper functioning of nature. And it is not for less, because they are responsible for housing a Incredible biodiversity of species of birds, fish and other groups of animals, as well as a wide variety of plant species characterized by their hydrophilic development, dependent on water.
On the other hand, in terms of their value within the anthropic world, wetlands serve numerous occasions as areas for food production that require large amounts of water for cultivation, as is the case of rice. Other times they are used as areas to obtain raw materials, such as wood and reeds.
There are still more factors for which it is of vital importance wetland conservationsince they intervene directly in the regulation of the superficial and aquifer water cycle, acting as controlling agents of possible floods; As well as participating in the control of erosion, the regulation of the nutrient cycle, high biological productivity, carbon dioxide retention in its soils and, in general, the stability of ecosystems.
If you want to read more articles similar to Wetlands: what are, types and characteristicswe recommend that you enter our category of ecosystems.
- Castellanos, CA (2005) Wetland ecosystems in Colombia. Industrial University of Santander.
- Rodríguez, H. (10/7/2016) Wetlands of the world seen from space. National Geographic Spain Magazine.
- Schnack, J. et al., (2000) Anthropic wetlands: his contribution to the conservation of biodiversity in the subtropical and pampásic domains of Argentina. Argentine Association of Ecology, Ecology Magazine AustralVolume 10, pp: 63-68.
