Transcript PA Wetlands POWERPOINT

PA Text pp. 22-26
Wetlands
• A wetland is an area that:
– Contains unique types of soils,
– Is home to plants adapted to the wet environment
– Contains water all year or at certain times during the year
• Bogs, Swamps, and Marshes are common names for wetlands
Bogs
• Is a wetland in which the soils consist mainly of decomposed
plant material called peat or muck
• Home to frogs, turtles, insects, and certain birds
• Plants:
– Moses are the most dominant
– Shrubs, evergreens, water lilies, pitcher plants, cranberries, and
blueberries
• Very acidic and little oxygen
– Occurs because there is little movement of water
Swamps
• Are a forested wetlands in which trees and bushes are the
dominant plants
• Animals:
– white-tailed deer, raccoons, herons, egrets, woodpeckers, snakes, frogs,
turtles
• Soil:
– Maybe be rich in nutrients or not
• Swamps are classified depending on the type of tree that dominates
the swamp
– Conifer Swamps = Cedars, pines, spruces, hemlocks
– Hardwood Swamps = Maples, willows, aspens, birches, elms, oaks
• Conifer Swamp
Hardwood Swamp
Marsh
• Is a wetland that generally forms at the mouth of a river or in
areas where there is poor drainage
• Water comes from nearby creeks, streams, and rivers
• Soil = rich in nutrients
• Plants:
– Grasses, sedges, bulrushes, and cattails
• Animals:
– Beavers, frogs, turtles, raccoons, muskrats, opossums, birds, insects
Pennsylvania Wetlands
• 407,000 acres of PA are wetlands
• Three general types of wetlands in PA
1. Forested Wetlands
2. Scrub-Shrub Wetlands
3. Emergent Wetlands
Forested Wetlands
• Are areas where the dominant plants = matured woody trees
– Red & silver maples
– Black gums
– River birches
– Green ashes
• Make up 220,000 acres of PA wetlands
Scrub-Shrub Wetlands
• Are wetlands where the dominant plants are scrubs and
shrubs and plants under 20 ft.
– Alders
– Willows
– Spicebushes
– High-blush blueberries
– Winterberries
– Honey suckles
• Covers 139,000 acres of PA Wetlands
Emergent Wetlands
• Marshy areas where plants are tooted in soil but emerge
above the water
– Rushes
– Grasses
– Sedges
• Covers 52,000 acres of PA wetlands
Wetlands at Work
• Wetlands serve many different functions
– Provide habitats and food
– Spawning grounds
– Cycle nutrients through the ecosystem
– Protect land from erosion and damage from floods and storms
– Filter pollutant from environment
Habitat
• Wetlands are home to hundreds of different species
– Many of these species (35%) are endangered or threatened
– Endangered = soon to be extinct
– Threatened = soon to become endangered
• Other organism that call wetlands home:
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500 plants species of concern
80% of PA’s amphibians
41% of PA’s reptiles
120 species of birds
Food Factories
• Very high primary productivity rates
• Plants form the base of wetland food webs
– Decomposing plant parts provide food and nutrients for bacteria,
fungi, protisits, and various invertebrates
– Bacteria, fungi, protisits, and various invertebrates are food sources
for wetland vertebrates
Spawning Grounds and
Nurseries
• 200 species of amphibians, wild ducks, geese, swans, bitterns,
and herons reproduce in wetlands
• Wetlands in the flood plains of larger rivers provide spawning
habitats for many freshwater fish
– Ex. Salmon
Cycling Nutrients
• Plants make their own food using photosynthesis
– Use energy from the sun to produce food and oxygen
– Oxygen is used for respiration by all heterotrophs
• Are animals and fungi that eat plants and animal matter
– Plants also move phosphorus, nitrogen, and other nutrients through
the wetland
Buffer Zones
• Wetlands can function as sponges
– Absorb access runoff and slowly release it back into the
environment
– Ability to store water and slow the flow has several advantage
1. Reduce likelihood of flood damage
2. Help control increases in the rate and volume of run off in urban
areas
Buffer Zones
• Wetlands aid in protecting coastlines
– Roots of vegetation holds soil in place
– Plants absorb the energy of waves and break up the flow of the stream or
river currents
• Buffer storm surges from hurricanes and tropical storms
–Prevents severe damage to nearby roads, houses, and other
structures
Pollution Control
• #1 water pollutant in PA = sediment
• Wetlands play a huge role in reducing sediment pollution
– Slow down water movement
– Decreased movement allows sediment to settle
• Also help prevent air pollution
– Many wetland plants store carbon rather than releasing it into the air
as carbon dioxide
• Carbon Dioxide is thought to affect global climates
• Sediment Pollution
Air Pollution
Suburban Swamps
• PA’s creeks rivers and streams were critical to the
development of many cities because…
– Provided means to transport goods
– Fresh water for consumption
• Urbanization has disrupted and destroyed many wetlands
associated with these bodies of water
– Many wetlands are disappearing!
Negative Effects of
Losing Wetlands
• Greatly reduces recreational areas
• Make the area less attractive to business
– No Business No Money
• Reduce the quality of air and water in the area
• Landscapes may have an increase risk of flooding
Benefits of Protecting Wetlands
• Vegetation will provide good air and water quality
– Plants can remove harmful gases from the air and harmful
substances from the water
• Provide habitats for wildlife
• Lessen the chances and effects of flooding
Formation of Urban
Wetlands
• Are what’s left streams and rivers that flowed through urban
areas prior to development
• May develop due to poorly planned development
– Ex. Drainage ditches become urban wetlands when runoff collects
in artificial gullies
Benefits of Urban
Wetlands
• Buffer the runoff from pavements (minimizing flooding)
• Trap and filter out harmful substances
– Iron, lead, copper
• Aid in treating large volumes of wastewater produced by
cities and towns
Complete the following…
Using the PA Textbook:
• Lesson Review 1-14 pg. 26
• You Solve It pg. 25
– Answer the five questions at the end of the passage