Wetlands of the World

1. Wetlands of the World Chapter 3

2. Consists of about 6% of the earth’s land. • Found in large sections of the arctic circle and equator. • Dependant on wetland definitions.

3. Wetland Losses • Primary reason due to drainage • Agriculture most common • Dams, Levees, Roads • Commercial and residential development • Developed countries have leveled off, but developing countries increasing. • Around 50% of global wetlands have been lost • A bit more in the US (55%) and Europe (60%) • 90% in New Zealand • 60% in China

4. Wetlands of North America • 107 million acres of wetlands in the continental US • Additional 175 million in Alaska. • Although wetland losses over 50% since European settlement, the last 15 years has seen an increase in wetlands. • Increase in the form of ponds. Quantity same, quality decrease. • 310,000 acre costal wetland loss, in the Atlantic • 25 times higher in the Gulf

5. Florida • Coastal Mangroves, Big Cypress Swamp, and the Everglades • The Everglades are in southeast Florida and contain mostly sawgrass.

6. Big Cypress Swamp Mangroves

7. Prairie Potholes • Found in the Dakotas, the south part of the central Canadian provinces, and Minnesota. • Large numbers of waterfowl emminate from this region. • Half of the area has been drained and filled since the 1960s

8. Louisiana • Louisiana contains 3 million acres of wetlands • They are some of the richest and diverse in the world • They represent 40% of wetlands in the continental US. • Supports a 1 billion dollar per year seafood industry. • Formed by deposits from the Mississippi River.

11. As the Mississippi flows, soil is deposited at the mouth to increase the land area as you can see by the birds foot pattern in our state. However, since we have built levees, this soil and sediment has no where to go. The Atchafalaya is the natural path now for the Mississippi river.

12. South America • The largest wetland areas are the Llanos and the Pantanal. • The Llanos is found in the north of the continent in Venezuela and Colombia. It is dominated by grasslands and support a vast amount of wildlife including over 400 bird species. • The Pantanal are found almost in the middle of the continent in Paraguay. It is four times larget than the Everglades. Like the Llanos, it is periodically flooded and supports a rich and diverse animal and plant life.

13. Europe • Peatlands- found in Ireland and the north part of the continent, they form about 20% of Europe. • There are extensive marshes running from Portugal to the Netherlands along the atlantic coast. • The Mediterranean Deltas lie to the south of the continent and are more pronounced in Spain and France.

14. Africa • Some of the major Deltas of Africa include the Niger in Mali, the Okavango in Botswana, and Sudd in Egypt. • The wetlands of the Okavando more than triple their area (from 2500-4000 sq. km) during the winter months. • Mangrove swamps are found in Senegal and Gambia. These areas are being turned into rice farms and the wood, as in other places in Africa, is being sold as charcoal.

15. The Middle East • The south of Iraq and Iran contain the largest wetlands of the region. These marshes are the result of the watershed from the Tigris and Euphrates rivers. • Threats to this region include not only draining but damming upriver by Turkey and Iraq.

16. Asia • China- The largest and most important wetlands of China are some of the regions of the Pearl, Yellow, and Yangtze rivers. • These places are also the areas of greatest population density and therefore much of the area has been turned into rice paddies or fish ponds.