The Everglades 25°17'13.31"N 80°53'32.49"W

The Everglades is the United States' largest wetlands. It is located in southern Florida. Several hundred species of animals live there, including 350 species of bird and alligators, manatees, and dolphins. Marsh plants, that live in water almost all of the year, are found in the Everglades, among many other species of plants.

An Interesting Video

http://www.5min.com/Video/Global-Wetlands-in-Danger-489142510
This video helps explain the importance of wetlands and the threats that face them.

The Pantanal 16°13'31.81"S 61°43'49.37"W

The Pantanal, located in Brazil and parts of Bolivia and Paraguay, is the largest wetland in the world. The Pantanal has an area of roughly 60,000 miles and contains a variety of flora and fauna. The name "Pantanal" comes from the Portuguese word pântano, meaning wetland, bog, swamp, or marsh. Habitat destruction and pollution are just two threats the Pantanal faces that are caused by humans.

Ecological Succession

Primary Succession:
https://research.wsulibs.wsu.edu:8443/jspui/bitstream/2376/1151/1/v73%20p186%20Titus%20et%20al.PDF
This article describes how wetlands went through primary and secondary succession to return to their previous state 14 years after the Mount St. Helens eruption in 1980.
Definition of Primary Succession: The development of life in an area without topsoil. Primary succession occurs after events such as volcano explosions and or glacier movement.




Secondary Succession:
http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/IOTD/view.php?id=35521
Hurricanes that ravage the coast of Louisiana often cause secondary succession in the wetlands near the Gulf of Mexico. Plant life is destroyed during these hurricanes, which means that new plant life must replace that which is destroyed during these events.
Definition of Secondary succession: Ecological succession that occurs with topsoil. This occurs after natural disasters and when disease riddles a community.

Interesting Characteristic

Wetlands are crucial to the survival of amphibians. Roughly 50% of all amphibians rely on wetlands for a breeding ground. If wetlands were to be eliminated, nearly half of all amphibians would be as well. This would decrease biodiversity, as explained in an earlier blog.

Human Effects on Wetlands

Humans are notorious for their negative affects on the many different types of biomes. The wetlands are not excluded from the list of biomes that are damaged by human activities. Wetlands are often the victims of draining and filling by humans. These areas are then used for the construction of new buildings or the creation of recreational lakes. This is not only common in the United States, but also throughout the world. In fact, by 1993, half of the world's wetlands had been drained. Wetlands are also subject to pollution through the dumping contaminated waters and mining for peat and other minerals.. This causes increased extinction or endangerment of organisms living in such environments. Actions like building a new condominium complex may seem beneficial at the time, but these changes to the environment will most likely negatively affect us in the future. Habitat destruction and alteration can decrease biodiversity. This may cause a decrease in food supply and security, meaning they could be more vulnerable to similar diseases and other problems. A decrease in biodiversity could also cause humans to miss out on plants and minerals that may be vital to curing diseases. Also, like mentioned in an earlier post, wetlands provide excellent protection against flooding. Without wetlands to protect areas with high precipitation, floods could occur more frequently and cause more damage. Wetlands are not easy to replace either. The expense to create artificial dams and to replace all of the services the wetlands provide would be gigantic. We humans must work towards protecting the wetlands of the world, or we will surely pay the price with the disappearance of such a necessary component of the environment.

Just one example of destruction to the wetlands by humans: http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/10354/1112232-100.stm
Thankfully, this developer paid for his crimes to the environment.

Eco-tourism

If I were to educate people on the wetland biome, I would inform them of these 5 things:
1. Wetlands are vital to biodiversity. 43% of federally listed species rely directly or indirectly on wetlands for survival.
2. Wetlands help naturally control flooding by storing and slowly releasing water and by impeding the stream flow of flood water.
3. They produce huge amounts of food for humans and other organisms. Fish and rice are two main food sources provided by wetlands for humans.
4. Wetlands are a main depository for water. One acre of wetlands can contain 1 million to 1.5 million gallons of water.
5. Wetlands can produce different kinds of medicines from the plants and hydric soil of the environment.

These statements would prove how important the wetlands are to our environment, and hopefully persuade people to become involved in the preservation of  our environment.