Wetlands are game changing. Do you know about a wetland ecosystems? These wetlands are just like a game changer for our planet. A wetland is entirely covered by water at least part of the year. Wetland is a specific area of land that is mostly covered by water or saturated. The water is often groundwater, seeping up from an aquifer or spring. Wetland’s always filled with water through a nearby river or lake. Within a wetland depth and duration of its flooding varies. Wetlands may have transitions throughout the year. They can be both, dry and not totally underwater conditions.
Wetlands have diversity in their appearances. Every type of it has unique healing characteristics for planet. Wetlands are rich in having diverse biotic communities like flora and fauna. Wetlands regulates different aspects of Environment. These wetlands maintains carbon sequestration, supply of fuel wood, industry of fisheries, tourism industry and other biogeochemical cycles. Wetlands can maintain quality of water by sedimentation and by saving nutrients. Moreover they are helpful in maintaining global climate. In all kinds of ecosystems, wetlands ecosystems ranked first in providing more ecosystem services to the environment. Ramsar Convention is a global treaty for conservation of wetlands.
Mainly these wetlands are of four types including Marsh, Swamp, bog and fen. Marshy wetlands are covered with more grasses and water flow is slow in them. Slow flow of water cause more nutrients to deposit in the sediments. Swamps are tree dominating wetlands and mostly present in low lying regions. Bogs are mostly wet and receives water through rains and dominated by mosses. Fen type of wetlands are alkaline in nature and mostly receives water from underground and surface water resources. Always dominated by grasses, weeds, plants and sedges.
Despite having a lot of ecological importance, these wetlands are degraded by both natural and anthropogenic activities. According to a research report almost 87 percent have been degraded around the world. Available data of Ramsar Convention Secretariat, 35 percent of wetlands has been reduced since 1970-2015. Degradation of wetlands brought economic loss. Across the world there is almost 2303 wetlands around the world and these are all fall in Ramsar sites. Ramsar Convention helped a lot in restoring these wetlands but there is more need to save them because degradation rate is still high. More attention and complete diverse network is required for wetland’s protection.
Save wetlands ecosystems, Save your planet.
