Our Wondrous World of Wetlands

February 2, 2012 | Dr. Jeff Wells

While many were excited to see Punxsutawney Phil, the famous groundhog of Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania, rise out of his hole facing his own shadow this morning (it looks like we’ll have 6 more weeks of winter), many others around the world are celebrating a separate event: World Wetlands Day.


Wetlands within the James Bay Lowlands of Ontario
Credit: Evan Ferrari

This event, thrown by the Ramsar Convention, is dedicated to spreading awareness about our world’s amazing wetlands. This year the theme is “wetlands and tourism”. While Paris may appeal to those seeking city views and tasty pastries, wetlands have become increasingly popular for tourists around the world. In fact, in 2010 the total number of wetland tourists surpassed 940 million and is estimated to reach 1.6 billion. These tourists can be a particularly important economic boost for some of more rural communities near wetlands.

This shouldn’t come as a huge shock to birders. Wetlands can be some of the best places to find a wide variety of birds. Waterfowl and shorebirds relish the prevalence of fish, frogs, snails, and other tasty treats, while a variety of songbirds and other landbirds come for the abundance of insects buzzing throughout these wet and often marshy areas. This in turn attracts the attention of hawks and other raptors, who see a meal themselves in some of the larger birds as well as small mammals in the area. One visit to a particular wetland might yield sights of a large number of birds of various sizes, shapes, behaviors, and colors.


Lesser Yellowlegs love wetlands
Credit: Glen Tepke

Of course, Canada’s boreal forest (our particular focus) is no stranger to wetlands. In fact, it contains the largest concentration of wetlands anywhere on earth. This is a large reason why the boreal is such a hotspot for migratory birds during summer breeding. In fact, 80% of North America’s waterfowl rely in some form on the boreal forest.

But wetlands aren’t just good for birds, they’re good for us. They lock in exorbitant amounts of carbon, preventing greenhouse gasses from entering our atmosphere and further impacting our climate. They filter freshwater and remove toxins, providing millions of people around the world with safe, drinkable water.

But don’t just take my word for it. Here’s an amazing video put together by Ducks Unlimited highlighting the numerous benefits we receive each year from wetlands. It truly is amazing what they do!

Wetland-dependent migratory birds help show us that while many of us may be more active in our own backyard, we all benefit from clean and healthy wetlands around the world. Protecting and restoring wetlands in Central America means healthier and stronger birds returning back up closer to us come spring. Here are a couple stories discussing birds and wetlands in other parts, the first by BirdLife International about birds and wetlands in the Caribbean and the second from a hunter/environmentalist blogger (you can be both if you hunt properly!) from my home state of Maine:

The Caribbean wetland experience:
http://www.birdlife.org/community/2012/02/the-caribbean-wetland-experience/

The Worst Duck-hunting Season Ever:
http://nrcm.typepad.com/the_environmentalist_hunt/2012/02/the-worst-duck-hunting-season-ever.html

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Quick update - the LA Times recently posted a terrific blog showing restored (meaning man-made) wetlands don't come close to comparing to natural ones:
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/environment/la-me-gs-restored-wetlands-no-match-for-natural-20120201,0,7166919.story

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