The unique and demanding physical and chemical characteristics of bogs result in the presence of plant and animal communities that demonstrate many special adaptations to low nutrient levels, waterlogged conditions, and acidic waters, such as carnivorous plants. Bogs serve an important ecological function in preventing downstream flooding by absorbing precipitation. Bogs support some of the most interesting plants in the United States like the carnivorous Sundew and provide habitat to animals threatened by human encroachment.
Bogs in the United States are mostly found in the glaciated northeast and Great Lakes regions northern bogs but also in the southeast pocosins. Their acreage declined historically as they were drained to be used as cropland and mined for their peat, which was used as a fuel and a soil conditioner. Recently, bogs have been recognized for their role in regulating the global climate by storing large amounts of carbon in peat deposits.
Bogs are unique communities that can be destroyed in a matter of days but require hundreds, if not thousands, of years to form naturally. Northern bogs are generally associated with low temperatures and short growing seasons where ample precipitation and high humidity cause excessive moisture to accumulate.
Therefore, most bogs in the United States are found in the northern states. Northern bogs often form in old glacial lakes. They may have either considerable amounts of open water surrounded by floating vegetation or vegetation may have completely filled the lake terrestrialization.
The sphagnum peats of northern bogs cause especially acidic waters. The result is a wetland ecosystem with a very specialized and unique flora and fauna that can grow in these conditions called acidophiles.
Moose, deer, and lynx are a few of the animals that can be found in northern bogs. The word pocosin comes from the Algonquin Native American word for "swamp on a hill. Usually, there is no standing water present in pocosins, but a shallow water table leaves the soil saturated for much of the year. They range in size from less than an acre to several thousand acres located between and isolated from old or existing stream systems in most instances. Because pocosins are found in broad, flat, upland areas far from large streams, they are ombrotrophic like northern bogs, meaning rain provides most of their water.
Also like the bogs of the far north, pocosins are found on waterlogged, nutrient poor and acid soils. The soil itself is a mixture of peat and sand containing large amounts of charcoal from periodic burnings. These natural fires occur because pocosins periodically become very dry in the spring or summer.
The fires are ecologically important because they increase the diversity of shrub types in pocosins. The most common plants are evergreen trees Loblolly Bay, Red Bay and Sweet Bay , and evergreen shrubs titi, fetterbush and zenobia.
Pocosins provide important habitat for many animals, including some endangered species like the red-cockaded woodpecker. They are especially important as the last refuge for Black Bears in coastal Virginia and North Carolina and the Red Wolf has recently been reintroduced in North Carolina pocosins. Habitat is the most valuable function of Pocosins. Some pocosins are very large and difficult to develop, and so they remain largely undisturbed.
As a result, they are a haven for species adapted to living in unaltered forests. As more and more land is developed in the Eastern United States, pocosins are becoming ever more valuable refuges for wildlife.
The slow movement of water through the dense organic matter in pocosins removes excess nutrients deposited by rainwater. The same organic matter also acidifies the water. This very pure water is slowly released to estuaries, where it helps to maintain the proper salinity, nutrients and acidity. This process is important to help maintain healthy fish populations important to both commerce and recreation.
Pocosins are also sources of valuable timber and fuel, but these uses can harm or destroy pocosins if they are not carried out responsibly. Historically, pocosins were mostly threatened by agriculture. Today, timber harvesting, peat mining, and phosphate mining join agriculture as the biggest threats to the remaining undisturbed pocosins. Fens, are peat-forming wetlands that receive nutrients from sources other than precipitation: usually from upslope sources through drainage from surrounding mineral soils and from groundwater movement.
Fens differ from bogs because they are less acidic and have higher nutrient levels. Therefore, they are able to support a much more diverse plant and animal community. These systems are often covered by grasses, sedges, rushes and wildflowers.
Some fens are characterized by parallel ridges of vegetation separated by less productive hollows. The ridges of these patterned fens form perpendicular to the downslope direction of water movement. Over time, peat may build up and separate the fen from its groundwater supply. When this happens, the fen receives fewer nutrients and may become a bog. Like bogs, fens are mostly a northern hemisphere phenomenon -- occurring in the northeastern United States, the Great Lakes region, the Rocky Mountains and much of Canada -- and are generally associated with low temperatures and short growing seasons, where ample precipitation and high humidity cause excessive moisture to accumulate.
Fens, like bogs, provide important benefits in a watershed, including preventing or reducing the risk of floods, improving water quality and providing habitat for unique plant and animal communities. According to a NASA study, mangrove forests are incredible at processing carbon, earning them a place as "one of the planet's best carbon scrubbers".
Did you know that a coral reef is a wetland? They complement mangroves and seagrass beds, to help to protect vulnerable coastal communities around the world from stormy conditions and wave damage, protection that would otherwise have to be paid for by people.
We're calling for the creation of , hectares of healthy wetlands to help fight today's climate, nature and wellbeing crises. WWT has updated their privacy and cookies policy We use cookies on this site to improve your user experience. Wetlands Some of the most threatened habitats in the world, yet also the most vital for wildlife and people, wetlands can be found in millions of squares kilometres of stunning scenery or simply in your back garden. Types of wetland Learn to recognise some of the most common wetland ecosystems from all over the world here, and their surprising hidden depths.
Rivers and streams The river with its banks and trees is an iconic setting for childhood stories like Wind in the Willows. Floodplains A floodplain is created when a body of water, such as a river or the sea, overflows and submerges the surrounding land.
Deltas and estuaries An estuary is where freshwater and saltwater meet, and often goes hand in hand with river deltas the surrounding landmass. Lakes You may pass a local lake regularly but did you know that more than , species are known to live in freshwater ecosystems?
Ditches Ditches are man-made channels for the purpose of collecting water runoff. Wet grasslands Lowland wet grassland often occurs on farmland, where areas of the land are periodically flooded. Marshes Historically overlooked, marshes are wetlands populated by mainly herbaceous species not trees. Mudflats Mudflats are coastal wetlands that form in inter-tidal sheltered areas, usually visible during low tide. Peat bogs Peat bogs can come in two forms: raised bogs or blanket bog.
Fens Highly nutrient-rich and teeming with bio-organic matter, these areas are some of the most fertile landscapes in the world. Wet woodlands Wetlands and woodlands come together in harmony. Reedbeds Reedbeds provide shelter to shy wetland species. Mangroves Mangrove snakes and hummingbirds dart through the branches of these unique trees, whilst corals, fish and crustaceans use their roots as nurseries.
Coral reefs Did you know that a coral reef is a wetland? Join our movement We're calling for the creation of , hectares of healthy wetlands to help fight today's climate, nature and wellbeing crises. Pledge your support. Some of the oldest trees in the park are old growth northern white cedars found in the swamps of the Beaver Basin Wilderness.
More than eighty species of wildlife in the Upper Peninsula are known to use cedar swamps during some portion of their life cycle. Return to top of page. Box 40 Munising , MI Explore This Park. Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore Michigan. Info Alerts Maps Calendar Reserve.
Alerts In Effect Dismiss. Dismiss View all alerts. Wetlands, Marshes and Swamps. Some of the park's wetlands can be easily viewed from the Marsh Trail boardwalk on Sand Point. NPS photo j. Temporary vernal pool at Pictured Rocks J.
Marr photo A wetland is a low-lying land area that is saturated with water, either permanently or seasonally, and contains hydric soils and aquatic vegetation. Marsh in the Pictured Rocks backcountry NPS photo Marsh A marsh is a wetland dominated by herbaceous plants such as grasses, rushes, or sedges.
Typical northern bog found in the Upper Peninsula Michigan DNR photo Bog Bogs are acidic, low-oxygen wetlands that form where accumulation of organic material occurs faster than organic decay. Northern white cedar swamp in the Upper Peninsula Michigan DNR photo Swamp Swamps are forested wetlands, characterized by specific types of trees and soil types.
Last updated: September 22,
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