8 Interesting Wetland Facts

A wetland is exactly as it sounds: land that’s saturated with water. Due to their unique nature, they are home to a diverse range of species. In an average wetland, a combination of soil and plants help filter the water. Because of this, we have access to clean water in our lakes and rivers.

Wetlands support an exceptional range of plant and animal life, including many endangered species. In the United States alone, more than 1/3 of threatened and endangered species exclusively live in wetlands, and nearly half use them at some point in their lives.

Spanning more than 42 million acres, the Pantanal is the largest tropical wetland in the world — and it's one of the most pristine, too. It sprawls across Bolivia, Brazil and Paraguay, and supports millions of people there, as well as communities downstream.

There are multiple classification systems used to categorize wetlands, and each follows specific criteria. The United States Fish and Wildlife Service uses the Cowardin system, which is based on landscape position, vegetation cover and hydrologic regime. The 5 types of wetlands under this system are known as marine wetlands, estuarine wetlands, riverine wetlands, lacustrine wetlands, and palustrine wetlands. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers uses a classification system developed by Brison, which includes: riverine, slope depressional, flat and fringe. This system is based on geomorphic setting, dominant water source and hydrodynamics.

In a world where floods are becoming increasingly common, the need for wetlands is clear. A single acre of wetland can hold up to 1–1.5 million gallons of floodwater. This natural storage helps reduce flooding and protect nearby communities during major storms.

Many people may know about wetlands, but they may know them by an entirely different name. In fact, many people are probably aware of these different names without knowing they describe types of wetlands as well. Some of these names include: marshes, swamps, fens, and bogs. Do you have a wetland near you?

By now, we know that wetlands are an important barrier during storms, acting as nature’s first defense. Wetlands slow moving water and absorb its force before it reaches the surrounding landscape. This helps stabilize soil and reduce damage from heavy rainfall and rising floodwaters.

More than a billion people around the world depend on wetlands for their livelihoods – that’s about one in eight people on Earth.