Dear Reader,
Wetlands often get a bad rap as being a stinky pit of dirty water with nothing to offer but bad smells and bugs. This couldn’t be further from the truth!
Wetlands are an extremely important part of nature, and they are the most biologically diverse systems on the planet (even more than rainforests!!) In this newsletter we invite you to explore and learn all about these underappreciated wonders of nature.
Enjoy!
Brenna and Betsy
The Folks at Nature Net
August
Wetlands
“We need the tonic of wildness, to wade sometimes in marshes where the bittern and the meadow-hen lurk, and hear the booming of the snipe; to smell the whispering sedge where only some wilder and more solitary fowl builds her nest, and the mink crawls with its belly close to the ground.”
-Henry David Thoreau
Did You Know?
Wetlands are like the “kidneys” of the natural world? They filter out harmful chemicals from the water and purify it. Without wetlands, the underground aquifers where we get our drinking water from would be much dirtier and not safe for drinking!
Wetlands can act as storage reservoirs and even protect land from floods. In fact, part of the reason why hurricanes in Louisiana and Florida are particularly damaging is because most of their naturally occurring wetlands have been drained or dug up. Now these states are trying to reconstruct some of them to try and create a “buffer strip” for future storms.
There are more species in a wetland than you would think. The wetland with the highest biodiversity is the Amazon River Basin, which has 3,000 species of fish alone!
What To Do This Month:
Aldo Leopold said, “I wish I were a muskrat, eye-deep in the marsh.” If you were a wetland muskrat, what would you find under the surface? What sights and sounds would you encounter above the water? Grab your galoshes and bug nets and get out there to see!
Visit and explore local wetland systems like the Cherokee Marsh and see how many different plants and animals you can find. Lots of other Nature Net sites have wetlands too, including the Aldo Leopold Foundation, the Aldo Leopold Nature Center, the International Crane Foundation, UW-Arboretum, and more.
Do you find more animals in the water, in the air, or on the land? What kinds? What do you think they eat? If you have access to a simple microscope or jeweler’s loupe, take a small sample of water to see the tiniest residents of the wetland! What aquatic critters did you find? Pick out a few and identify them using this print-out or this virtual dichotomous key.
Instant Outdoor Expert:
What’s in a Name?
While the term “wetland” encompasses any land area that is saturated with water for at least part of the year, there are actually different names for each type of wetland:
-A Marsh is a wetland dominated by grasses and reeds rather than woody plants.
-A Swamp is a wetland dominated by trees and other woody plants.
-A Fen is a neutral or alkaline wetland that is fed by groundwater with lots of minerals.
-A Bog is an acidic wetland that accumulates peat, is fed by rainfall, and has very few nutrients.
There are even more types of wetlands that can be found around the globe, including mangroves, mudflats, saltmarshes, and seagrass beds. It’s hard to keep them all straight!
For Families:
Tricks of the Trail – Pretty and Poisonous!
When exploring wetlands, be on the lookout for poisonous plants! Poison Ivy has been know to favor stagnant wetlands. Swamp Milkweed sap can irritate your skin. Wear jeans, if possible, to prevent contact with your skin.
Featured Nature Net Site:
Cherokee Marsh
The largest wetland in Dane County, this spectacular marsh contains all sorts of microhabitats and land geographies. This extensive wetland area not only provides water quality and flooding protection for the city of Madison, it is also home to many mammals, amphibians, reptiles and birds.
If you use eBird, you can contribute your own bird sightings on the Friends of Cherokee Marsh’s website — or use the site to take a peek at what you might spot on your visit.
There’s more than one way to enjoy Cherokee Marsh. Hiking trails, boardwalks and boat launches are located throughout the Marsh’s three units: North, South and Mendota. And, although it’s hot now, don’t forget to keep Cherokee Marsh in mind when you grab your skis or snowshoes this winter. Treks through the popular North Unit will take you past Native American conical mounds, to several overlooks and a boardwak to the shore of the Yahara River. Use this map to navigate!
Nature Craft:
Wetland in a Pan
A neat craft that will help kids see how wetlands perform many important ecological functions.
Materials needed:
-modeling clay
-long shallow pan (13×9)
-scraps of indoor/outdoor carpeting, florist’s foam or sponges
-watering can
-cup of dirt
-jar of muddy water
Directions: Spread a layer of modeling clay in half of the baking pan to represent land. Leave the other half empty to represent a body of water. Shape the clay so it is sloping downward into the water and seal the edges.
Cut a piece of carpeting/sponge/florists foam to completely fill the space across the pan along the edge of the clay. This will be your “wetland.” Make sure it fits securely or the model won’t work!
Now that your wetland model is complete, try pouring “rain” on the dry land and see what happens as it flows into the wetland. Put dirt on the dry land and make it rain again. Now, do the same with the wetland strip removed! what happens? Pour the muddy water onto the dry land and watch what happens to it as it flows through the wetland…what does it look like when it comes out?
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Suggested Reading:
“Wetlands” – by Adele Richardson (5-10)
“Life in a Wetland” – by Melissa Stewart (5-8)
“Baby Animals of the Wetlands” – by Carmen Bredeson (4-6)
“A Wetland Habitat Book” – by Molly Aloian (4-8)
“Take a Wetlands Walk!” – by Jane Kirkland (6-8)
“My First Wetlands Nature Activity Book” – by James Kavanagh (4-8)
“Wetlands: Soggy Habitats!” – by Laura Purdie Salas (6-8)
“Wetland Food Chains” – by Bobbie Kalman (5-9)
“Chris T. Saves the Wetlands” – by Carol Ter Haar (5-9)